Top Trans-Pacific Carriers and Ports
Special Report
An importer in the automotive sector said he has paid PSSs totaling $ 1,000 per FEU so far . The proposed July 1 PSS is “ still a little bit fuzzy ,” he said .
“ Nobody ’ s gone hard and fast on it yet , so like anything else , everything ’ s negotiable ,” the source said . “ We are fighting this as much as we can .”
PSSs are charged on fixed-rate shipments that move under an importer ’ s annual service contract , or an NVO ’ s named account contract . Carriers and mid-sized accounts concluded most of their service contracts in May at rates of $ 1,500 to $ 1,700 per FEU to the West Coast . With spot rates to the West Coast now more than $ 6,000 per FEU , carriers are trying to make up some of the difference through PSSs , a forwarder source said .
“ Carriers fixed their contracts at too low a price point ,” the source said . “ They ’ re trying to close that spread .”
Carriers must file their peak season surcharges with the
Trans-Pacific spot rates spike into June as GRIs stick
Container spot rates from North Asia to US West and East coasts , in USD per FEU
USD per FEU
$ 11,770 $ 10,000
$ 8,000
$ $ 10,000 6,000 L
$ 4,000
$ 2,000
$ 0 LJul Jan 2023
Jul Jan Jan 2024 , 2024 North Asia to US East Coast North Asia to US West Coast
Source : Platts , S & P Global © 2024 S & P Global
Opportunity knocking
Intra-Asia carriers reenter trans-Pacific amid soaring rates , demand
By Keith Wallis
Surging cargo demand and soaring freight rates have triggered a return to the trans-Pacific market by intra-Asia carriers approximately 18 months after they withdrew with a post-pandemic hangover . Established long-haul carriers are also launching a raft of new services between Asia and the Americas to take advantage of the buoyant market .
That comes as US retailers have further upgraded their monthly import forecasts through September , while Drewry said China – US freight rates will continue to gain as they near a 20-month high . Drewry said composite index rates from Shanghai to Los Angeles were $ 5,975 on June 7 , the highest since Aug . 25 , 2022 .
Singapore- and Dubai-based SeaLead Shipping and China ’ s BAL Container Line are the intra-Asia carriers returning to the trans-Pacific trade after an 18-month hiatus , while Taiwan ’ s TS Lines is also rekindling its trans-Pacific ambitions . Cosco Shipping , Wan Hai
Lines , Maersk and Mediterranean Shipping Co . ( MSC ) are also bolstering their Asia-Americas trades with new services .
Peter Sand , chief analyst at rate benchmarking platform Xeneta , said many issues in the current market — port congestion , strong demand and tight capacity — “ appear familiar to what we experienced during COVID .”
The current strong market was highlighted by SeaLead in announcing the launch of its Asia West Coast ( AWC ) service .
“ The introduction of the AWC service is a strategic response to the robust demand we ’ ve seen in trans-Pacific trade ,” Chan Soo Chee , acting head of SeaLead , said in a statement June 11 .
SeaLead launched its first US West Coast trans-Pacific service at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and inaugurated a US East Coast service in March 2022 . Both were halted in December 2022 as rates and demand dropped .
The latest service was inaugurated by the 1,827-TEU feeder vessel Adamastos that departed Nansha , the main international gateway port for Guangzhou in South China , on June 16 , according to SeaLead and Linerlytica . The full port rotation is Nansha , Ningbo , Shanghai , Qingdao , Busan , Long Beach , Nansha and Shanghai .
The second vessel , the 5,610-TEU Suez Canal , departed Nansha on June 26 . SeaLead said five vessels will initially be deployed on the service that will eventually expand to a weekly schedule .
The carrier said the eastbound transit time from Nansha to Long Beach will be 25 days , with an 18-day westbound voyage . Transit time between Busan and Long Beach is 15 days in both directions .
“ South Korea holds significant importance for the AWC service , offering excellent transit times between Busan and Long Beach in both directions ,” SeaLead said .
Separately , BAL Container Line , the shipping subsidiary of Hong Konglisted LC Logistics , relaunched its China – Mexico Express ( CMX ) service on June 2 from Shenzhen ’ s Yantian terminal in South China with the 1,809-TEU Amoureux . BAL will also restart its China Pacific Express ( CPX ) service using the 1,809-TEU sister vessel Arionas on June 19 from Yantian , according to the carrier ’ s latest sailing schedules .
Both services provide a similar rotation , with calls at Yantian and Qingdao and the Mexican ports of Lazaro Cardenas and Manzanillo . But whereas the final call on the CMX service is Manzanillo after a 25-day transit from Yantian , the CPX ends at
20 Journal of Commerce | July 1 , 2024 www . joc . com