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Register Free Trial While Houthis choke the Bab el-Mandeb to Saudi oil exports, containerships are still using the strait to deliver cargo to Jeddah and other Red Sea ports with several carriers including Maersk and CMA CGM also sticking to their trans-Suez transits. The pause in military exchanges is providing little clarity on the direction of the market, although container freight futures anticipate freight rates to drop from their recent peaks despite the recent rise in fuel prices. Despite
Register Free Trial The renewed military conflict in the Persian Gulf kept the Strait of Hormuz shut last week, but Maersk and CMA CGM have continued to send their ships through the Red Sea despite the increased risk of Houthi attacks. Although only 24 containerships remain idle in the Persian Gulf with a total capacity of 69,000 teu, there is a growing number of Iranian ships that are stranded in various Asian anchorages that have been added to the idle fleet. The rising tensions is giving con
Register Free Trial The SCFI retreated by 4.3% last week after a 10-week run of successive rate hikes as new capacity additions relieved some of the vessel space tightness that has driven spot rate gains of over 70% since April. Carriers failed to hold on to the early July rate hikes as rates receded across the board. Although carriers are still pushing for 2 more rounds of rate hikes on 15 July and 1 August, rates appears to have peaked for now with space constraints starting to ease with new
Register Free Trial The idled containership fleet has shrunk to the lowest levels since February as the ships stranded inside the Strait of Hormuz dropped to 21 units with most of them already evacuated in the last 3 weeks. Containership availability remains very tight and this is reflected in the rising charter rates and resale prices as carriers scramble to secure any open tonnage to capitalize on the surging freight rates. The SCFI surged past 3,300 despite some of the 1 July rate hikes bein
Register Free Trial The vessel evacuations from the Persian Gulf continue despite Iranian threats as 26 containerships with a total capacity of 195,000 teu or more than half of the stranded ships have already withdrawn from the Gulf. Activity within the Gulf has also picked up with over 60 ships now employed on intra-Gulf services as the idle fleet dropped by more than 40 units over the past 2 weeks. Strong cargo demand across all tradelanes have pushed global TEU-mile demand growth to 7.3%, w
Register Free Trial The positive momentum in the container market continues with the mid-June rate hikes sticking without rollbacks in the strongest rate ascent since the Red Sea diversions started at the end of 2023. Carriers are gearing for another major rate hike in July with increases as high as $5,000/feu on certain routes. Cargo demand is now clearly outpacing the availability of vessel slots with the peak season in full swing coupled with the strong growth of cleantech exports out of Chi
Register Free Trial The re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz after the US-Iran peace deal due to be signed this Friday will release some 51 containerships with a total capacity of 300,000 teu presently stranded in the Persian Gulf (full list of ships in page 2). The capacity set to be evacuated from the Gulf could provide some short-term relief to an over-stretched container market but uncertainty remains over when regular services to the Persian Gulf can be restarted which would add to additiona
Register Free Trial The Iran war has not triggered a stagflationary shock but has instead driven a fresh container cargo boom that has sent freight rates to a new 18 month high. Demand for AI-related technology and renewable energy products have driven an early peak season cargo surge with a new round of rate hikes still planned on 15 June after carriers pushed through the 1 June rate hike and Peak Season Surcharge implementation. The positive momentum is driven by both a shortage of vessel spa
Register Free Trial The SCFI index rose sharply by 15.9% to reach 2,572 points, and has risen by 92.9% since the Iran-US conflict started 3 months ago. The prolonged Hormuz blockade and high oil prices have not dampened cargo demand, but have instead spurred further growth of clean energy goods while US imports have been boosted by the removal of the IEEPA tariffs. The strong container freight rate momentum looks set to last at least until the end of July as carriers continue to cash in on the
Register Free Trial MARKET BRIEF 2026 WEEK 21 Freight rates out of Asia are rising sharply across the board with higher FAK rates and Peak Season Surcharges set to take effect from 1 June. An early peak season cargo rush is keeping capacity tight across all main tradelanes with limited new vessel deliveries and port congestion helping to cap vessel space availability. Carriers’ earnings will receive a strong boost in the 2nd quarter from the higher rates that are expected to stick until the end