News
The market for container exports from the Chinese port of Shanghai slightly picked up in Week 21. The lockdown in the city of Shanghai was being gradually lifted, while ports were operated at 90% of capacity. In addition, car traffic on expressways had recovered to two-thirds. The composite Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), an index for spot rates for exports from Shanghai that do not include terminal handling charges (THCs), improved 0.3% from the previous week, remaining on an upward trend for two weeks in a row. By individual routes, spot rates declined on that to the west coast of North America, but on those to other regions, they were mostly bullish, with fares for shipments to the Middle East and South America both growing for two back-to-back weeks.
Spot rates for containers destined to the west coast of North America fell 1.4% to $7,776 per FEU, staying on the decline for two consecutive weeks, while those for containers to the east coast waned a milder 0.5% to $10,505 per FEU. On the trade route to Europe, container rates gained 0.05% to $5,865 per TEU, continuing to rise minutely for two weeks running. On that to the Mediterranean, in contrast, rates fell 0.4% to $6,589 per TEU. On north-south routes, spot rates for containers to the Middle East Gulf rose 6.8% to $2,742 per TEU. Thank to an increase in the number of suspended services, which led to tightening space supply, they grew for three straight weeks to almost return to how they were a year earlier ($2,617 per TEU). Those bound for South America were moved at $6,487 per TEU, up 2.8%; for Australia and New Zealand, at $3,326 per TEU, up 1%; and for southern Africa, at $5,522 per TEU, up 2.6%. Rates for shipments to eastern and western Africa remained unchanged.
