Xeneta Shipping Index reports drop in box contract rates

The latest report from the Xeneta Shipping Index shows that the long-term contracted rates fell by 1.1% in September which is a first since January and it won’t be the last.

As per the Xeneta CEO, Patrik Berglund, in the last few months there were clear signs of a change in the market like spot rates have been dropping and in some of the key corridors, plunged over the course of the previous month as lower demand and easing port congestion took effect. The split between the short-term and long-term market is now wider than ever before in many trades even though record numbers of blank sailings would normally be considered a peak season.

The new data on spot markets from WCI (World Container Index) that was recently published shows that the main spot rates will either continue declining or might even quicken this week. The worst hit was the route from Asia to the Mediterranean which saw a decline in spot rate from $1200 per TEU in just one week. The only trade line that got trending was transatlantic with around a 4.5% surge. Mr. Lars Jensen from Vespucci Maritime commented that the scenario is highly unusual, that the Atlantic spot rate is more than the rate on the Pacific on the US west coast which is around 30% higher than the rate level of Asia North Europe.