Freightos Baltic Index

The mystery of the frozen trans-Pacific spot rates

trans-Pacific container port

Historically strong Asia-U.S. container demand has fluctuated since mid-September. The numbers change from week to week and month to month. It’s not as if trans-Pacific demand hit a peak 10 weeks ago and froze in place.

The strange thing is that spot index rates did exactly that. 

Rates differ slightly based upon which source you look at, whether it’s the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), Freightos or Drewry’s. But the pattern is the same. 

As of Monday, the Freightos Baltic Daily Index...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/the-mystery-of-the-frozen-trans-pacific-spot-rates

Trans-Pacific box boom likely to last until March — or longer

trans-Pacific terminal

The thinking back in August and September was that trans-Pacific container volumes would fade after China’s Golden Week holiday in the first week of October. Volumes would still be solid through December, but they’d peak around that earlier holiday.

It didn’t happen. Not even close. U.S. imports just kept coming, unabated. With three weeks left in the year, it’s virtually guaranteed that there will be no letup in 2020. Even with COVID cases surging, the next line in the sand appears to be after...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/container-import-boom-likely-to-last-into-march-or-longer

+ More