News
The composite index for container export freight rates from the Chinese port of Shanghai, or the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), went down 0.7% from the previous week to 4,946.01 points in Week 7, remaining on a downward trend for the fifth week in a row, according to the Shanghai Shipping Exchange (SSE).
Spot rates declined 2% to $10,870 per FEU for containers to the east coast of North America but increased 0.3% to $8,117 per FEU for those to the west coast. This year’ Lunar New Year holidays ended on February 6, but major factories were closed through February 13. Throughput is, therefore, expected to pick up again when full-fledged production is resumed in early March.
On the trade route to Europe, spot rates fell 0.3% to $7,652 per TEU, while exports to the Mediterranean were moved at a rate of $7,416 per TEU, which also went down 0.3%. Due to strong winds, container loading and unloading were suspended as long as 12 hours at the Dutch port of Rotterdam. Also, ship congestion persisted at major ports in Europe. As a consequence, there was a delay of some 17 days per round in services to the region.
