Weekly Commentary on China Containerized Transportation

Xu+Qiao

In the week ending Dec.20， the overall demand of China export box market kept weak. Following the Europe and Mediterranean services， rate increase plan began to be carried out in the USWC and USEC services， but smaller than that in the former services. More capacity were withdrawn from services by box carriers who aimed to sustain the rate increase achievement， and temporary service cease plan was implemented when rates increased in many services， with freight rate stable this week. On Dec.20， China Containerized （Export） Freight Index （CCFI） issued by Shanghai Shipping Exchange （SSE） quoted 1065.95 points， up by 1.8 percent week on week， while Shanghai Containerized （Export） Freight Index （SCFI） issued by SSE quoted 1115.29 points， almost in line with that of last week.

In the Mediterranean service， transport demand was improved slightly this week with the shipment of cargo ahead of the New Year. Some box liners strengthened to suspend services and to limit capacity temporarily. Furthermore， CMA CGM intended to cut routes in the service ahead Europe， Mediterranean and West Africa， from 10 to 5， which were operated by its subsidiary DELMAS. In a result， the average slot utilization rates in the Europe and Mediterranean services were improved， both reaching 98 percent beyond， with some even full loaded. On Dec.20， the freight rate in the service from Shanghai to the base ports of Europe and Mediterranean services （covering seaborne surcharges） quoted USD1526 per TEU and USD1601 per TEU， dropping by 3.8 percent and 3.7 percent from one week ago respectively.

In the North America service， with the approach of Chinese lunar New Year， spot rate rose. Most box carriers started to carry out the rate increase plan made in mid-Dec.， increasing by USD200 per FEU and USD300 per FEU in the USWC and USEC services respectively. The average slot utilization rate was around 90 percent， almost unchanged from last week， leading the actual increase of rate only as half as the announcement in the USEC and USWC services. On Dec.20， the freight rate in the services from Shanghai to USWC and USEC services （covering seaborne surcharges） quoted USD1814per FEU and USD3117per FEU， up by 6.7 percent and 5.2 percent from one week ago respectively.

In the Australia service， the overall cargo volume hovered on a low level currently. The average slot utilization rate of main carriers was only 70 percent， with spot rate on the downward trend and lack of support from favorable factors. On Dec.20， the freight index in the China-Australia service quoted 945.15 point， down by 3.9 percent against last week.endprint

Transport demand was reluctant to increase in the Persian Gulf because of political instability in the place of receipt. In the week ending Dec.20， the average slot utilization rate in this service was around 80 percent， with spot rate lacking support. Box carriers who had hiked rate last week raised it largely this week， while part of carriers who had not lifted rate last week could only increased it marginally to improve the income， leaving the spot rate on the downward trend generally. On Dec.20， the freight rate in the Shanghai-Persian Gulf service tumbled by 9.0 percent week on week to USD634 per TEU.

Cargo volume declined somehow in the Japan service， where the average slot utilization rate leaving Shanghai Port dived to below 80 percent， with spot rate tumbling slightly. On Dec.20， the freight rate in the China-Japan service quoted 790.49 points， having a week-on-week decrease of 1.5 percent.

（Please contact the Information Dept of SSE for more details.）endprint