Container Spot Rates Hold Steady as Transpacific Gains Offset Asia-Europe Declines

Global container shipping rates held steady this week as stronger pricing on the Transpacific offset declines on Asia-Europe routes, according to Drewry.

The Drewry World Container Index (WCI) was unchanged at $4,465 per 40-foot container for the week ending September 3, with the major east-west trades moving in opposite directions.

Transpacific rates strengthened, with Shanghai-to-Los Angeles spot rates rising 5% to $7,185 per 40-foot container. Rates from Shanghai to New York increased 3% to $9,587.

Drewry expects rates on the trade to remain broadly stable next week as carriers continue to manage available capacity. Six blank sailings have been announced for next week, double the number this week, while cargo demand remains resilient.

The picture was weaker on Asia-Europe routes. Shanghai-to-Genoa rates fell 10% to $4,368 per 40-foot container, while Shanghai-to-Rotterdam dropped 5% to $4,092. Drewry expects further modest declines next week as demand softens and carriers add capacity. Blank sailings on the trade are expected to fall from four this week to just one next week.

The diverging rate trends come as container shipping faces another period of shifting capacity and routing.

Carriers are increasing transits through the Suez Canal, with more capacity expected to return as services shift away from the longer route around the Cape of Good Hope. The Cape diversion carries significantly higher fuel and operating costs while adding days to voyages, putting services that continue using the route at a competitive disadvantage.

At the same time, geopolitical risks in the Middle East remain elevated, with continued attacks on commercial shipping adding to disruption around the Strait of Hormuz.

Weather is also creating problems in Asia. Chinese ports remain constrained after Typhoon Saudel struck the country, compounding congestion following a series of recent storms.

Conditions at the Panama Canal are adding another capacity constraint. Drought-related restrictions are limiting the waterway to 34 daily transits in early September, falling to 32 later in the month, while Neopanamax capacity is capped at nine reservation slots per day.

For now, the competing pressures have left Drewry’s global benchmark largely unchanged, even as individual trade lanes continue to move sharply in different directions.

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