News / Rates update, week 51: GRIs boost prices, with more to come in January

Shanghai Yangshan deep water container terminal ID 117637608 © Chuyu | Dreamstime.com

Container spot rates on the transpacific trades shot up this week, on the back of a series of mid-December general rate increases (GRIs) that appear to have significantly boosted prices.

Shippers on the transpacific eastbound route from Asia into the US west coast found themselves paying nearly an additional $1,000 per 40ft after Drewry’s World Container Index (WCIU) recorded a 26% week-on-week hike in the spot rate.

The WCI’s Shanghai-Los Angeles leg rose $913 per box, to finish the week at $4,499 ...