23.08.16SCFI Rises for 3 Weeks Running

The composite Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) rose 0.4% from the previous week to 1,043.54 points in Week 32, as spot rates increased on the route to North America and some north-west routes, according to the Shanghai Shipping Exchange (SSE). The composite index has been on the rise for three weeks in a row.

Spot rates for container exports from Shanghai fell 2.2% to $926 per TEU to Europe and 1.4% to $1,507 per TEU to the Mediterranean. On the other hand, they were favorable to North America, improving 0.7% to $2,107 per FEU to the west coast and 1.9% to $3,170 per FEU to the east coast.

On north-west routes, ex-Shanghai spot rates surged 27.9% to $435 per TEU to Australia and New Zealand. There were, however, more modest increases of 5.4% to $853 per TEU to the Middle East Gulf and 4.2% to $1,379 per TEU to southern Africa. In contrast, containers were carried at $2,444 per TEU to South America, down 0.3%, and $2,533 per TEU to eastern and western Africa, down 1.5%.

Spot rates for containers from Shanghai were weak across the board in Asia, going down 2.1% to $319 per TEU to Kansai, Japan; 0.6% to $332 per TEU to Kanto, Japan; 2.1% to $140 per TEU to Southeast Asia; and 4.8% to $157 per TEU to South Korea.

Set at a baseline of 1,000 points on Oct. 16, 2009, the SCFI is an indicator for spot rates for container exports from Shanghai that do not include terminal handling charges (THCs).