HOUSTON (ICIS)–Average global rates for
shipping containers moderated this week, and
market players in Latin America have even seen
decreases in costs from Asia, but rates to the
US East Coast are likely to remain elevated as
deployed capacity remains tight.
Rates on the World Container Index (WCI) from
supply chain advisors Drewry edged higher by 1%
over the week, as shown in the following chart.
Rates from Shanghai to the US East Coast rose
by 2.5% over the week while rates from China to
the US West Coast rose by less than 1%, as
shown in the following chart.
Drewry expects freight rates to remain high
until the end of the peak season.
Rates from online freight shipping marketplace
and platform provider Freightos are slightly
higher to the West Coast and slightly lower to
the East Coast when compared with Drewry’s
assessments.
Judah Levine, head of research at Freightos,
said the convergence of peak season demand,
strained capacity on continued diversions away
from the Red Sea and Suez Canal, and congestion
at Asia ports are keeping upward pressure on
rates.
Kyle Beaulieu, senior director and head of
ocean Americas at Flexport, said in a webinar
this week that congestion has eased a bit over
the last month at key Asian ports, especially
Singapore.
But still, Beaulieu said deployed capacity was
91% in June and 94% so far in July.
He said general rate increases (GRIs) were
largely successful for 15 June and 1 July, but
that GRIs set to take effect on 15 July have
been cancelled.
He said there are no real signs of relief for
the Asia-USEC trade lane as capacity is
expected to remain tight.
For the near term, he expects the Red Sea
diversions to support higher rates, and those
higher rates to continue being spread across
all trade lanes.
A trader told ICIS this week that it is seeing
softer rates from Asia to South America.
Rates from Asia to South America were flat to
lower this week according to ocean freight
rates analytics firm Xeneta and as shown in the
following charts.
Additional reporting by Bruno Menini
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