Container shipping freight rates have spiked and are expected to continue going up on the back of severe container shortages as well as robust demand both on the Asia-Europe and transpacific trade lanes.

Following a period of short term container freight rates touching record highs on many major trade routes, long term rates are now also experiencing a boost, according to Bimco.

Container shipping has announced marginal capacity reductions in the third quarter on the transpacific and Asia-Europe lanes amid continuing strengthening of spot rates, according to analyst Sea-Intelligence.

The impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) could cause main carriers to collectively lose a staggering $23bn in 2020 under a “worst case” scenario, according to analyst Sea-Intelligence.

The dramatic drop calls to ports in the Indian sub-continent has led to a sharp rise container freight rates in the first half of March reflecting the effects of large-scale vessel capacity reductions and equipment shortages.

Container shipping is “riding the storm” amidst the coronavirus outbreak even as disruption to China’s manufacturing output and port operations are creating a big reduction in the supply of containerised goods, according to consultancy Maritime...

The Baltic Exchange has for the first time launched daily spot ocean freight rate indices for 40-foot containers (feu), with Freightos Group adding real-time, transparent price discovery and risk mitigation features.

Larger containerships of 3,000 teu and above can look forward to a bullish charter market against a backdrop of continued tight supply and strong demand.