"The steady climb to ever-higher rates for container shipping this year is showing signs of easing, at least temporarily. On the busy Shanghai-to-Los Angeles trade route, the rate for a 40-foot container sank by almost $1,000 last week to $11,173, an 8.2% drop from the prior week that was the steepest weekly fall since March 2020, according to Drewry. But investors are taking notice: Shares of the world’s container lines — from the biggest players like Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd to smaller competitors including Zim and Matson — have stumbled in recent days from record highs set in September."
The steady rise in container transportation prices appears to be reaching a climax.
Source: Drewry, Freightos via Bloomberg
*FEU=40-foot equivalent unit
"Judah Levine, group
head of research at Hong Kong-based Freightos, said the recent softness could
reflect slower production in China during its Golden Week holiday combined with
power restrictions in some regions. "It’s possible some reduction in
available supply is curbing container demand and freeing up some of the
additional capacity that carriers have added during peak season," he said.
The average wait is now more than 11 days, compared with a high of about eight
days back in April."
"Port congestion is a
key reason why Bloomberg Intelligence doesn’t see the market at the start of a
downtrend."
"Meanwhile, as Bloomberg’s Robert Tuttle reports, the hunt for the ship that may have caused a major oil spill off the coast of Orange County in California is proving to be a slow grind."
Source: Brendan Murray in London / Bloomberg News