[051116.EN.BIZ] Box Shipping Rates Rise Despite Continuing Unpredictability: Xeneta

GLOBAL market intelligence company Xeneta says its analysis of the third quarter container shipping costs reveals new positive trends for ocean carriers.

Xeneta, which crowd sources shipping data from more than 600 major international businesses, covering more than 60,000 port-to-port pairings and over 17 million contracted rates, said that the recent collapse of Hanjin laid the foundations for a trading period like no other.

"It was certainly a stand-out quarter," said Xeneta CEO Patrik Berglund. "Short-term rates on the world's number one trade route - Far East Asia to North American main ports - skyrocketed, largely due to Hanjin transforming oversupply to undersupply almost overnight."

This, said Mr Berglund, enabled big rate hikes, with the market average price for FEU climbing 47 per cent across the third quarter, starting at US$1,240 and ending at $1,826.

"There is clearly still an issue of structural overcapacity, albeit more balanced now, that pushes prices down - with risks for both the carriers and BCOs/shippers," he said.

Short-term rates on the number two route - Far East Asia to North Europe - actually fell 24 per cent in the third quarter, he said.

"That said, this is more of a stabilisation, or flattening out, as it should be seen in the context of a longer-term climb.

"Market averages for 40-foot containers hit a low of $662 in April and had risen to $1,500 by the close of September on this route. So, the fall isn't as serious for carriers as it may seem.

Source : HKSG.