DREWRY’S composite World Container Index decreased by 7% this to US$2591.41 per 40-foot container.
This was the 38th consecutive weekly decrease. The index has dropped by 72% when compared with the same week last year.
The WCI is now 75% below the peak of US$10,377 reached in September 2021.
It is 31% lower than the five-year average of US$3764, indicating a return to more normal prices, but remains 82% higher than average 2019 (pre-pandemic) rates of US$1420.
The average composite index for the year-to-date is US$6922 per 40-foot container, which is US$3159 higher than the five-year average (US$3764 mentioned above).
Freight rates on Shanghai – Rotterdam dropped 14%, or US$439, to US$2687 per FEU.
Spot rates on Shanghai – Los Angeles and Shanghai – New York fell 6% each to US$2130 and US$5045 per 40-foot box respectively.
Similarly, rates on Shanghai – Genoa and Rotterdam – Shanghai slid 3% each to US$3404 and US$840 per 40-foot container individually.
Rates on New York – Rotterdam, Rotterdam – New York and Los Angeles – Shanghai hovered around the previous week’s level.
Drewry expects smaller week-on-week reductions in rates in the next few weeks.
