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The freight futures for the Far East to North Europe route rebounded slightly today, as traders continue to debate the extent of correction the physical market may experience in the coming months. Uncertainty remains regarding the potential peak of spot freight rates. Maersk has issued a notice announcing an increase in its peak season surcharge (PSS) from $100 per FEU to $500 per FEU effective 1 August. With this adjustment, Maersk's FAK rate will rise to approximately $3,500 per FEU from 1 Au
The European Contracts retreated after Hapag Lloyd published a quotation of $2,935 per FEU for shipments departing on July 29, which was announced after the market closed yesterday. EC2510 staged an intraday rebound in the afternoon, as some traders are still betting on a possible surprise in October, traditionally a seasonal trough. However, the counter still closed near the day's low. Trading sentiment continued to decline after reaching its peak at the market open yesterday. From our channel
Asia-North Europe rates are enjoying a surprise revival, with carriers able to retain most of the early July gains. Spot rates are expected to remain firm in the next 2 weeks as capacity utilization remains very high and Maersk in particular was able to lift their spot rate quotations in a change of direction from their previous rate cuts. Congestion at European main ports remain high especially in Rotterdam and Antwerp but waiting times are starting to improve gradually Rates to the Med is how
The new US import tariffs that are set to imposed from 1 August will not have any detrimental impact on volumes from Vietnam and India who are both set to be the main beneficiaries of the Trump tariffs as Transpacific container cargo volumes continues to switch away from China to alternative origins. Containerised exports from Vietnam to the US have risen by 29% in the first 6 months of 2025, with volumes reaching a record high in the last 2 months. Chinese exports to the US dropped by 0.8% dur
EC staged a surprise rally yesterday (15 July), with EC contracts surging 5–16%. This move allowed them to catch up with the strength seen in the spot market, where liners have been increasing freight rates, albeit at a slower pace than initially planned. Both EC2510 and EC2512 contracts reached their daily upper trading limit yesterday, although they retraced some of their gains today (16 July). The rally was primarily driven by a wave of fresh buying interest. Open interest rose sharply to 86
Freight futures contracts rose by 0.5–4% today amid higher volumes and increased open interest. Traders were surprised by the resilience of the spot market, which many had believed had peaked a fortnight ago. Vessel utilisation remained robust, despite weekly capacity exceeding 300,000 TEU over the past two weeks.
Freight futures in Shanghai declined across the board as buyers, having seized upon recent strength in the physical market, moved to unwind their positions. Open interest dropped to 73,658, the lowest since October 2024. Maersk swiftly raised its quote for shipments departing in the fourth week of July to $3,090 per FEU, up from $2,990 at its launch just a day earlier. Meanwhile, OOCL and ONE are cutting rates for near-term cargoes, leaving CMA CGM’s $4,745 per FEU quote for August shipments lo
Freight futures listed in Shanghai edged higher today, supported by a modest but positive movement in Maersk’s freight rate quotations. After the market closed yesterday (9 July), Maersk published a new rate of $2,990 per FEU for Shanghai to Rotterdam shipments in the fourth week of July, compared to last week’s rate of $2,980 per FEU for the third week of July. The latest quotation quickly rose to $3,000 per FEU, indicating strong buying interest at this level.
There is no improvement in the port congestion in North Europe, with waiting times at Rotterdam and Antwerp extended up to 7 days, while berthing at Hamburg and Bremerhaven are delayed up to 3 days. Barge delays also remain severe with waiting times of up to 3 days, which has exacerbated the severe yard congestion situation. Spot rates to North Europe continue to edge upwards on rising utilization which edged higher as weekly capacity remained steady at 300,000 TEU for a third consecutive week,
CMA CGM leads the list of carriers on the Suez/Red Sea route with 12 containership passages in June. Apart from regular passages on its Asia-Med Phoenician Express and Levant-Middle East Express services that have retained their Suez routing since last year, CMA CGM added 3 ad-hoc sailings last month, including the first of the Middle East-Med Express ships that will resume full Suez passages from the end of June. CMA CGM was the only main carrier to enjoy the Suez Canal Authority’s 15% discoun