News
The composite Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), an indicator for spot rates for ex-Shanghai container exports that do not include terminal handling charges (THCs), closed at 1,037.07 points in Week 16, which increased 0.3% from the previous week and has remained on an upward trend for four weeks in a row. Spot rates for container exports from Shanghai were bearish on east-west routes. For example, rates went down again on the route to the North America in reaction to rate hikes by shipping companies in the previous week. In contrast, spot rates improved 8% on the route to the Middle East due to shipping capacity reductions.
On east-west trade routes, ex-Shanghai spot rates improved 1.4% to $883 per TEU to Europe but slid 0.8% to $1,605 per TEU to the Mediterranean. To the west coast of North America, they sank 2.1% to $1,633 per FEU, and there was a decline of 2.1% to the east coast as well.
On north-south routes, spot rates for containers from Shanghai picked up 7.6% to $1,314 per TEU to the Middle East. On the other hand, there were decreases of 6.7% to $238 per TEU to Australia and New Zealand and 0.8% to $1,989 per TEU to South America. Rates fell on routes to Africa, too.
In intra-Asia waters, ex-Shanghai rates were stable across the board, hiking 1% to $193 per TEU to Southeast Asia and 0.6% to $172 per TEU to South Korea. Rates remained unchanged at $324 per TEU to Japan's Kansai and $332 per TEU to Kanto.
