Global Shipping in Doldrums
By Aiswarya Lakshmi
Thursday, November 5, 2015
Wells Fargo Securities says that headwinds face global shipping industry and the continued overcapacity means freight rate gains are less likely to stick.
"Given the continued overcapacity headwinds and easing containerized trade demand, we believe these freight rate gains are less likely to stick, and we expect rates to remain under pressure as we approach the slack winter season, particularly following a muted peak season," says a report from Wells Fargo Securities, written by Michael Webber that appeared in the Forbes.
Container Freight Rates Get Boost Amid November General Rate Increases, Will They Stick? Last week, the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) increased by 41.1% wk/wk (week-over-week) to $759/TEU (twenty foot equivalent unit), marking the highest levels reached since early August (although the SCFI is still down 30% year-to-date).
That said, we note that the bulk of these gains were driven by the latest round of general rate increases (GRIs) across the Container Line group, with Liners implementing rate hikes ranging from $600-$1,200/TEU along major trade lanes, which helped to drive the Shanghai-Europe and Shanghai-Mediterranean indexes up by 328% (to $988/TEU) and 298% (to $804/TEU), respectively.