Spot rates on return routes also experience sharp falls worldwide
Although the focus is on the collapse of fronthaul itineraries, return trips are depreciating in the same way
The collapse of spot rates on fronthaul operations has grabbed the headlines, but shipping lines on certain backhaul operations have seen equally large drops, with some operations seeing spot rates fall for much longer than in fronthaul operations, even below the records in January 2020, reports Xeneta.
From Northern Europe to the Far East – according to Xeneta – the average rate for a standard FEU on the return route has fallen to US$820/FEU, this is more than US$1,000/FEU (-56%) lower since its peak in May 2021, the month from which it has fallen steadily. On the other hand, data from the Drewry World Container index indicates that the Rotterdam-Shanghai route this week marked a spot rate of US$870/FEU as of November 17, that is, a year-on-year drop of -47%.
While in the fronthaul direction the Transpacific route experienced the fastest and deepest drop of all spot rates, the return route experienced only minor drops.
Xeneta’s measured average spot rate from the US West Coast (USWC) to the Far East now sits at US$1,100/FEU, after declining since the start of this year, but still increasing by nearly 50 % since January 2020. According to Drewry’s WCI, the spot rate on the Los Angeles-Shanghai route was set at US$1,184/FEU, down -7% year-over-year.
By MundoMaritimo
