News
Containerized exports from China did not recover as fast as expected in Week 13, due to the ongoing novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The Shanghai Shipping Exchange (SSE) unveiled on Friday that the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) for the week in question came to 889.8 points, down 0.9% from the previous week. or the week in question came to 889.8 points, down 0.9% from the previous week.
The spot rate for moving containers from Shanghai to Europe fell 3.1% to $764 per TEU. On the trade route to the Mediterranean, demand for transporting protective medical products to Spain and Italy became stronger, but it was not powerful enough to raise the rate. As such, it decreased 1.3% to $880 per TEU.
Transport demand was not brisk on the route to North America, either, under the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic. The spot freight rates for containerized shipments bound for the east and west coasts were $2,758 per FEU and $1,515 per FEU, down 1% and 2.2%, respectively.
As for other trades, containers were carried to Australia and New Zealand at a rate of $899 per TEU, which surged 19.4% as operators continued to squeeze tonnage supply. In contrast, the rates for containers to the Middle East Gulf and South America were both weak, declining 1.1% to $1,004 per TEU and 4% to $1,304 per TEU, respectively.
On the route from Shanghai to Japan, transport demand decreased, but the rate for Kansai-bound containers improved 0.4% to $233 per TEU. That for Kanto-destined containers remained unchanged at $240 per TEU.
