Weekly Commentary on China Containerized Transportation

Zhu+Pengzhou

In the week ending Oct.10， affected by the China National Holiday， China export container market sees the cargo volume unimproved， and the whole market worsened. On Oct.10， China Containerized （Export） Freight Index （CCFI） issued by Shanghai Shipping Exchange （SSE） quotes 1058.76 points， down by 2.7% from last week； while Shanghai Containerized （Export） Freight Index （SCFI） issued by SSE falls by 2.6% from one week ago to 911.03 points.

In the Europe service， economy is trapped on the weak condition， while shipment from China shrinks remarkably. As a result， the average slot utilization rate in this service declines to be around 70%. In order to fill the excess space， box liners have to reduce freight rate further， leading to the lowest spot rate around USD625 per TEU. On Oct. 10， freight rate in the Shanghai-Europe service （covering seaborne surcharges） quotes USD738 per TEU， falling by 10.2% against last week. In the Mediterranean service， impacted by the unimproved economy in the countries like Italy and Spain， transport demand is weak. The average slot utilization rate in the West Coast of Mediterranean service declines to be below 75%， spot rate keeps decreasing. On Oct.10， freight rate in the Shanghai-Mediterranean service （covering seaborne surcharges） quotes USD1033 per TEU， down by 8.2% from last week.

In the North America service， as the improvement of employment rate， transport demand is boosted. After the Holiday， cargo volume in the USWC and USEC services declines， but the average slot utilization rate has a slight slip， with that in the USWC service keeping 90% around， and that in the USEC services hovering above 90%. Considering that the market is stable， most carriers hold stand-by attitude， leading spot rate fluctuating. On Oct.10， freight index in the China-USWC and USEC services quotes 978.91 points and 1344.40 points， both almost in line with that last week.

Transport demand tends to be stable in the Australia service. Simultaneously， more than one box carriers cease service after the Holiday， causing capacity shrinking evidently， and demand/supply condition improving. The average slot utilization rate in this service keeps at around 85%. On Oct.10， freight rate in the Shanghai-Australia service （covering seaborne surcharges） quotes USD672 per TEU， rising by 19.6% from last week.

In the Persian Gulf service， transport demand is improved. After consecutive slip in the nearest one month， spot rate has declined on the relatively low level； on the other hand， considering that transport demand is not strong after the China National Holiday， box liners have to extend freight rate increase plan， with spot rate falling slightly. On Oct.10， freight rate in the Shanghai-Persian Gulf service （covering seaborne surcharges） quotes USD536 per TEU， down by 2.5% from last week.

Cargo volume keeps rising in the Japan service， where the average slot utilization rate reaches to be near 85%， with spot rate rising. On Oct.10， freight index in the China-Japan service quotes 699.00 points， up by 3.3% against one week ago.

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