Shanghai’s freight futures market drifted aimlessly on Friday, with traders caught between hopes for a rebound in shipping rates and a conspicuous lack of resolve among major liners. The indecision was plain to see. The Tianjin Shipping Index for Europe, a daily benchmark, fell 2.6% to $1,492 for a 20-foot container and $2,404 for a 40-foot box. With Chinese markets set to close on Monday for a public holiday, traders pared positions, sending open interest down 8% to fewer than 87,000 lots—the
MSC will upgrade its USA to South Africa service to a standalone service from October 2025, replacing its long standing America Express (AMEX) service jointly operated with Maersk. The enhanced USA to South Africa service will retain the same AMEX port rotation that calls at New York, Baltimore, Norfolk, Charleston, Freeport (Bahamas), Port Elizabeth, Durban, Cape Town, New York, with an additional call at Philadelphia to be added during the citrus season that normally runs from April to Octobe
Jin Jiang Shipping has added an extended Saigon Shanghai Express (SSX) service connecting Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City, Shanghai, Nagoya, Shimizu, Shanghai, Haiphong from 22 May 2025. The new SSX service turns in 3 weeks using 3 ships of 1,000-1,200 teu. It is an extension of the original SSX service that was first launched on 31 March 2025 to connect Shanghai, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City, Shanghai using the 1,182 teu MILD SYMPHONY and MILD CONCERTO. A 3rd ship, the 1,098 teu MILD SONATA has been
EC2508 surged during the afternoon session on rumors of another round of General Freight Rate increases for the second half of June, expected to be announced imminently. Maersk’s quotation for a June 12 shipment also rose, with some moves up to $2,319, which may have provided additional support to the market. Open interest in EC2508 increased by 2,813 lots.
PIL, HMM and X-Press Feeders will jointly launch a new North China Indonesia (NCI/NIS) / North China Java X-Press (NJX) service connecting Xingang, Qingdao, Xiamen, Singapore, Jakarta, Surabaya, Singapore, Xingang from 17 June 2025. The NCI/NIS/NJX service will turn in 5 weeks using 5 ships of 2,500-4,700 teu, initially comprising of the KOTA SEJATI, KOTA SEMPENA and KOTA SABAS from PIL, HYUNDAI UNITY from HMM and ZHONG GU TIAN JIN from X-Press Feeders.
CMA CGM will return to the Suez route on the Med Express (MEDEX) service from June 2025 with a new rotation calling at Abu Dhabi, Jebel Ali, Karachi (temporarily omitted), Mundra, Nhava Sheva, Colombo, Jeddah, Piraeus, Malta, Genoa, Fos, Barcelona, Valencia, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi. The new rotation will turn in 10 weeks using 10 ships of 6,000 to 10,000 teu operated by CMA CGM starting with the 9,658 teu CMA CGM PELLEAS at Abu Dhabi on 27 May 2025. The first MEDEX westbound transit on the Suez is sc
EC2508, Shanghai’s benchmark freight futures contract, slid further in the afternoon session, closing at 1,949.5—dashing hopes that the market had found a floor at yesterday’s low - 1,987. The culprit, once again, was Maersk, which opened its FAK (Freight All Kinds) quotation for the second week of June at $2,100 per FEU. Yet, almost as soon as shippers began booking at that rate, the offer was abruptly raised to $2,231, rendering the initial price little more than a lure. With the Shanghai Con
Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk will launch a new Transpacific WC6/TP9 service connecting Xiamen, Busan, Long Beach, Xiamen. The Gemini Cooperation service will turn in 6 weeks and deploys 6 ships of 4,000-5,000 teu starting with the 4,622 teu RHONE MAERSK at Xiamen on 23 June 2025.
Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd remain at the bottom of the carriers’ EBIT margin league table for the 5th consecutive quarter with their operating performance continuing to lag behind all of their main rivals. The 2 Gemini Cooperation partners’ heavy reliance on contract cargo and relatively low exposure on the Transpacific market, coupled with their high operating cost base have continued to weigh down on their financial performance.
The restoration of suspended Transpacific services along with the addition of extra loaders have fully restored the total capacity available on the Far East-North American route. These capacity additions are expected to mitigate the impact of soaring Transpacific rates which are expected to rise to $6,000/feu to the US West Coast and $7,000/feu to the US East Coast on 1 June 2025. With container equipment availability and port congestion both under control, coupled with the rebound in vessel ca