News
Freight rates for container exports from China were bearish on major trade lanes in Week 39. The composite Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), an indicator for container exports from Shanghai that do not include terminal handling charges (THCs), went down 7.2% from the previous week to 1,922.95 points, the Shanghai Shipping Exchange (SSE) unveiled last Friday. The index has remained on the decline for the 16 week in a row and fell below the 2,000-point mark for the first time in 22 months.
Spot rates for containerized shipments from Shanghai plunged 10.6% to $2,399 per FEU, which have trended downward for 20 weeks on the route to the west coast of North America, while on that to the east coast, rates sank 5.8% to $6,159 per FEU, which have continued to slide for 19 consecutive weeks. On the route to Europe, spot rates waned 6.7% to $2,950 per TEU, which have stayed on a downward trend for 18 straight weeks. Rates declined 7.7% to $2,999 per TEU on the route to the Mediterranean.
On north-south trades, spot rates sank 7.7% to $912 per TEU for exports to the Middle East Gulf, 5.4% to $1,850 per TEU for those to Australia and New Zealand and 8.3% to $5,025 per TEU for those to South America. In intra-Asia waters, raw material exports from Southeast Asia are decreasing due to poor demand worldwide, while shipping capacity is on the rise. Spot rates for containers to the region, as such, remained weak, going down 9.8% to $348 per TEU, which have continued to fall for the 13th straight week. Rates for Japan's Kansai area dipped 4.3% to $311 per TEU and for Kanto, 0.3% to $301 per TEU. Rates for exports to South Korea sank 1.1% to $262 per TEU.
