(File photo: VCG)
US shipping prices are feverishly increasing. Freight rates from Shanghai to US West Coast ports doubled since the beginning of this year, hitting an eight-year high.
According to data from the Shanghai Shipping Exchange (SSE), as of September 11, China’s export container freight index for this route was $3,813. In comparison with the price of a week ago, the price of each container increased by $55. China’s container freight index on the US East Coast routes was reported to be $4,534, an increase of around 77 percent compared with the number at the beginning of the year.
August's market transportation demand is performing smoothly, based on the latest monthly report published by SSE. Some shipping companies are still in the process of gradually restoring supply, and some shipping routes have to face the frequent problem of cargo dumping.
It was mainly the contradiction between shipping demand and insufficient capacity supply that made US shipping prices skyrocket. From April to September this year, during the worldwide pandemic, the cross-border e-commerce business has been rising palpably. With China’s well-controlled the pandemic, the export demand for China’s daily necessities and medical supplies has increased significantly.
The rapidly rising US shipping prices made some shipping companies re-plan their distribution, which indirectly led to the increase of freight prices on many other routes in Europe and South America. For now, there are some ocean alliances that are raising their capacity, and the future price is expected to return to a reasonable range.
Some analysts believe that some routes, mainly in the US, will increase their capacity with an upcoming improvement of the demand. “We believe that US shipping prices should fall back to a relatively reasonable level,” said analysts.
(Compiled by Ma Xiaoxi)
