Asia-Europe rates received a much needed boost with gains on both the North Europe and Med routes as carriers pushed ahead with the mid-April rate increase of $200-300/teu that is holding for now on improved capacity utilization rates. With Chinese volumes shifting away from the US in the weeks ahead, carriers are eyeing increased demand to Europe as well as to the other markets to provide some relief from the turmoil in the US, with the overall SCFI edging up by 0.1% at the end of last week.
The 1st April Asia-Europe rate hike flopped, with carriers failing to push through their announced rate increases with cargo demand showing no signs of strength. The SCFIS registered its 4th consecutive weekly decline with carriers more willing to slash rates than to cut capacity despite the deteriorating market conditions. Carriers are hoping that worsening port congestion at both Chinese and European & Mediterranean main ports could provide support for another attempt to hike rates, while car
The SCFI rates for Asia-North Europe have edged up at the end of last week, rising marginally by 0.9% as carriers’ 1 April rate hike takes hold. However, market conviction remains low as carriers continued to slash their online spot rates to below $3,000 per FEU for April departures, underscoring the widening gulf between rate-hike announcements and market realities. SCFI rates to the Med continued to slip, dropping by 5.4% with no capacity discipline in display after MSC switched their 24k teu
Carriers are reducing Asia-North Europe rate quotations for the first week of April, sparking yet another round of failed rate hikes on this route. Although capacity utilization picked up in week 10 due to a large number of sailings skipped, the reprieve will be temporary as carriers are bringing back capacity over the next few weeks including the launch of the Ocean Alliance’s new NEU3 service from week 15 that will add another 8,000-14,000 teu per week . The repeated failures to push through
Capacity utilization on the Asia-North Europe services fell to their lowest levels since 2020, with no signs of a rebound in cargo volumes. Average utilization has dropped below 90% forcing carriers to slash rates with the SCFI tumbling by a further 15.2% last week. Although carriers are gunning for another round of rate hikes to bring base rates back up to $4,000/feu, it will be a tall order as current spot rates have already dropped below $2,000/feu with some carriers even extending the curre
The SCFI rebound on the North Europe route proved to be short-lived as carriers continued to slash rates. The SCFIS is also expected to resume its slide after the surprise 6% gain on 10 March, mirroring the weakness in the spot market where average survey rate quotations are still falling. Capacity utilization remains stubbornly poor, with no pick up in demand to be seen. Capacity discipline remains scarce, with the OCEAN Alliance still planning to proceed with the launch of their new NEU3 serv
SCFI spot rates to Europe continue to weaken in the week ended 14 February with no pick up in cargo volumes after the Lunar New Year holiday in the Far East. SCFI spot rates fell by 10.9% with actual spot rates slipping to $2,400-$3,000/feu to North Europe although carriers are aiming to raise rates above $4,000/feu again on 1 March as bookings are resuming after the holidays. Port congestion in Europe could disrupt the schedules of the ships returning to Asia in the next 2 months, which could
SCFI spot rates to North Europe fell sharply last week, dropping by 15.9% from the pre-holiday level with blank sailings unable to keep pace with the drop in cargo volumes across most Far East origins. Rates to the Med have held up relatively better, with the Med rate premium over the North Continent widening to 68% with the strong demand in the Red Sea taking away some of the Med capacity operated by niche carriers that are using the faster Suez route. Although Hapag-Lloyd announced a speculat
Although freight futures rallied last week on a potential breakdown in the Middle East peace deal, it has not stopped spot rates from sliding further. Maersk has fired another fresh salvo with further rate cuts in for shipments to North Europe, dropping its online FAK quotation to $2,500 per FEU from $2,800 for shipments scheduled to depart after 10 February. Current spot rates to North Europe have dropped by $250/FEU in the past week to around $3,000/FEU. The relentless pressure in the spot ma
Freight rates to North Europe continued to slip with the SCFI falling by 6.6% while the SCFIS dropped by 14.5%. Although most carriers are holding their rate quotations through mid-February with Far East offices to be shut for the Lunar New Year holidays, rates are still under pressure with vessel utilization already dipping ahead of the holidays and carriers are reported to be unsuccessful in building up any significant roll pool before the holidays. Further rate deterioration is expected with