It is reported that the Evergreen Shipping container freight rate from China to the eastern United States has reached US$17,000/FEU. Freight rates will reach even higher levels in the coming months.
Pacific freight rates will be affected by the six-day delay in the Suez Canal. The impact of the Suez incident has not yet been fully felt, and the impact on the wider supply chain It’s predictable.
Maersk Line reported that most ships were blocked due to the grounding of ships in the Suez Canal. Although they have now crossed the channel and navigation has resumed, the schedules of the ships are now out of sync. , equipment shortages and cargo delays are expected.
Getting ships back up and running could take weeks, and with delays in emptying containers already part of the problem, Asian exporters could face further delays, while spot rates could rise.
The Baltic Index (FBX) has not yet seen growth in the Asia-Europe trade, but in the Pacific, U.S. West Coast rates rose by about $600 a few days before the Easter holiday, from March 23 The price rose from US$4,534/FEU on March 26 to US$5,151/FEU on March 26. The index has risen to $5,375/FEU on April 6. As the U.S. stimulus package is gradually implemented, consumer demand is expected to continue to be maintained in the foreseeable future.
Shippers are currently finalizing annual contracts, and the main concern this year is space, not price. As a result, “everyone seems to want to increase their MQC (minimum quantity commitment),” Monroe said. “But most companies will seek as many commitments from shipping lines as possible in the 2021-2022 contract, and then sign contracts with NVOCCs to pay for the volume that the shipping lines cannot afford.”
This means As space tightens, shippers may rely more on NVOCCs, and with carrier bookings reaching the end of April, the freight forwarding industry is set for another bumper year.
“In 2019, NVOCCs accounted for 44% of the transpacific eastbound container shipping market share. By the end of 2020, this share was close to 47%. In the first three months of 2021, NVOCCs The carrier’s market share exceeds 52%, a trend that Monroe expects will continue.
While the full impact of the Suez Canal blockade has yet to be felt, the pricing of Evergreen’s 40-foot boxes sailing from the salt pans to the U.S. East Coast could be seen as a barometer of changes in shipping routes. “You can reserve a container on Ever Fit for an April 15 departure from Yantian at this price ($17,000/FEU). Unfortunately, there’s not much time left, so it may just be a matter of waiting,” Monroe said.
Meanwhile, Asian ports have begun reporting container shortages as U.S. intermodal and inland container conditions worsen, Monroe hinted that within the U.S. The supply chain has been “broken”.
At the same time, with the arrival of the traditional peak shipping season for manufacturing companies, the situation of “hard to find a box” has emerged again. Many companies have begun to book shipping space for less than April.
The situation is gradually easing, but the shortage is still there. It is expected that the problem of “hard to find a box” will not be solved in the first half of the year. It is expected that the peak season for container demand will continue into August and September, as foreign trade export demand continues to grow, and there is strong demand for new demand and replacement of old containers.
60 ships arrived at the port
Now, a large number of late-running ultra-large cargo ships are setting sail from the Mediterranean Sea, which is a big problem for ship operators. Said to be a huge challenge, they need to turn the ships around as quickly as possible and get them, along with urgently needed empty equipment, back to Asia.
Having to wait for berths, some ships will be required to reduce speed to avoid unnecessary fuel consumption, while others will be required to speed up to reach berthing windows, and the alliance will have to adjust in its loops Vessels are being rotated in order to mitigate the impact of vessel clustering in ports, while terminal operators are warning operators that their capacity is limited.
About 60 ships are scheduled to sail from the Suez Canal to Rotterdam on the day of the release. Antwerp and Rotterdam have both taken a tougher than usual approach to demands for handling British cargo in their hubs, amid fears that large numbers of containers queuing up to be unloaded will once again overwhelm already overwhelmed terminals.
The Port of Rotterdam said, “As the port expects an unusually high inflow of ships and cargo, it is important to strive for fast movement and an optimal balance between import and export flows.”< /p
