Weekly Commentary on China Containerized Transportation

Liu+Zijia

In the week ending March 14， China export box market was flat overall， and oversupply of capacity condition in most services was unimproved， with market falling. On March 14， China （Containerized） Freight Index （CCFI） issued by Shanghai Shipping Exchange （SSE）， responding the whole market， quoted 1075.41 points， down by 1.0 percent week on week. On March 14， China （Containerized） Freight Index （CCFI）， responding the spot market， issued by Shanghai Shipping Exchange （SSE） declined by 1.2 percent from last week to 945.32 points.

In the Europe service， the average slot utilization rate hovered around 85 percent， despite the temporary capacity measures by part of box liners， with the lowest below USD800 per TEU. On March 14， the freight index in the China-Europe service quoted 1452.98 points， down by 3.0 percent week on week， or falling by 13.8 percent month on month. In the Mediterranean service， transport demand had a slow recovery in the West Coast of this service， with the average spot rate slipping to be around USD900 per TEU； while export cargo volume was weak to increase in the East Coast of this service， with the average slot utilization rate hovering at around USD950 per TEU. On March 14， the freight index in China-Mediterranean service quoted 1493.57 points， falling by 3.1 percent week on week， or tumbling by 16.9 percent month on month.

In the North America service， the transport market decreased stably. Box carriers increased rate as planed， with that in the USWC service rising around USD150 per FEU， and that in the USEC service increasing about USD 100 per FEU. On March 14， the freight rate in the services from Shanghai to base ports of USWC and USEC （covering seaborne surcharges） quoted USD1931 per FEU and USD3287 per FEU， up by 8.2 percent and 3.2 percent week on week respectively.

The transport demand kept stable in the Persian Gulf service. The oversupply of capacity was retrieved， with the average slot utilization rate in some services climbing to be above 80 percent. Spot rate rebounded， with some rising by USD250 per TEU. On March 14， the freight rate in the Shanghai-Persian Gulf service （covering seaborne surcharges） issued by SSE quoted USD520 per TEU， jumping by 26.8 percent from last week. According to insiders， the freight rate in this service increased. Considering that freight rate in some service has declined below Break-Even Point， box carriers would have a negative effect on the annual performance if the current rate can not be hiked firmly.endprint

In the South America service， the whole transport market is flat recently. In the West Coast of South America service， export cargo volume kept stable， plus stiff capacity limit measurement by box carriers， making the average slot utilization rate hovered between 80 percent and 90 percent， with spot rate climbing. In the South Coast of South America service， the unbalanced supply/demand condition was worsened， leading to the large slip of spot rate， some even below USD600 per TEU. On March 14， the freight index in the China-South America service quoted 774.97 points， down by 5.9 percent week on week， or falling by 16.6 percent month on month.

Cargo volume rose somehow in the Japan service， where the average slot utilization rate leaving Shanghai Port inched up to be around 80 percent， with spot rate stable. On March 14， the freight index in the China-Japan service quoted 826.42 points， almost unchanged from last week.

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