Container spot rates from Asia to Europe remained virtually unchanged this week, despite softer demand, assisting carriers to lock-in shippers with huge contract rate hikes. On the transpacific, there was no let up in demand and BCOs are struggling to secure new deals with carriers. According to the Asia to North Europe component...
The UK port of Liverpool will see calls by the 2M transatlantic loop it won from Felixstowe at the end of last year suspended until mid-May, as Maersk and MSC grapple to improve schedule reliability. The 2M alliance said that, as a result of bad weather in the North Atlantic compounded by...
To improve schedule reliability, 2M partners Maersk and MSC are to avoid congested US west coast ports with two transpacific pendulum services. From this week, the AE1/Shogun and AE6/Lion loops from Asia will turn in North Europe instead of going on to the US. And to “facilitate the network adjustments”, the 2M said...
There are growing signs that the sky-high freight prices on the Asia-Europe trades may be beginning to structurally undermine it, as European importers begin to look for alternatives to sourcing from China. Keith Gaskin, group commercial director of Seko Logistics in the UK, said: “I am seeing importers in the UK and...
“Shippers shouldn’t let down their guards, just yet” – a phrase that could be true of any mode right now, but in this instance it refers to air freight. Bruce Chan, analyst for Stifel, warned shippers rates would remain inflated in air cargo, owing to “significant backlogs … in the entire freight...
Container spot rates from Asia to Europe and Asia to the US eased back further this week from their record highs. Nevertheless they are expected to stay at very elevated levels for some time. According to today’s reading of the Freightos Baltic Index (FBX), the rate for a 40ft from Asia to North...
UK chancellor Rishi Sunak caught industry offguard today, revealing eight winning bids for UK freeport status as he announced the Budget. East Midlands Airport, Felixstowe, Humber, Liverpool, Plymouth, Solent, Teesside and Thames were all awarded freeport status, amid expectations that the first one will be online by the end of the year. Mr...
Asia-North Europe container spot rates eased back slightly this week, as carriers ‘hoovered up’ stockpiled cargo accumulated before Chinese New Year. However, rates from Asia to the US increased again. Today’s reading of the Freightos Baltic Index (FBX) for a 40ft from Asia to North Europe was $8,308, compared with $8,430 a week...
Ocean freight is set to play a bigger role in south-east Asia’s booming cross-border e-commerce market. According to regional e-commerce logistics specialist J&T Express, the Covid-crisis has accelerated online spending across the region, with the market on track to reach $153bn in sales by 2025. This was the prediction before the pandemic hit...
IAG Cargo’s 18.5% rise in revenue to €1.3bn ($1.6bn) was severely overshadowed by the group’s overall €7.4bn full-year loss. Passenger revenue dived 75%, from €22.4bn to €5.5bn, while it burned through €4.1bn in cash last year. Its cargo division, as with other airlines, was the star of the show, as yields rose 94.6%,...
