Trans-Pacific Maritime
Special Report
Fully loaded
India – USEC spot bookings slow amid fewer sailings : forwarders
By Bency Mathew
The India – US East Coast trade is facing a capacity crunch due to sailing cancellations and shippers moving more cargo out to complete their export orders ahead of the Indian fiscal year closing at the end of March .
Local forwarders that spoke with the Journal of Commerce complained that some carriers stopped accepting spot bookings for February calls out of Nhava Sheva and Mundra with more than two weeks left in the month .
Blank sailings are nothing new amid ongoing network changes and lingering Red Sea issues , but the year-end cargo rush has flipped the supply-demand scenario , forwarders noted .
Major carriers have had rollover cargo to manage from a series of calls that were voided in January — reportedly five , which included a Hapag-Lloyd vessel gap in week four , sources said . Adding to that pressure , carriers blanked at least three West India – US East Coast sailings in February , including one on CMA CGM ’ s Indamex service and two on Ocean Network Express ’ WIN loop .
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“ We expect this space crunch to persist through March .”
However , Maersk shrugged off market talk of a halt in spot bookings .
“ Spot bookings on our MECL service are open ,” said Bhavik Mota , Maersk ’ s director of regional ocean management for India / Middle East / Africa .
All carriers on the trade have already jettisoned rate hikes they were
planning to push through during February . But carrier sources believe they will be able to stick with the increases lined up for March , mostly in the range of $ 1,000 per container , because of the more favorable supply-demand situation unfolding in the market . Continued lower capacity is also in the cards , with Hapag-Lloyd already declaring a vessel cut for week 12 .
At the same time , industry observers say the shipper push for vessel capacity is merely a blip rather than an indication of a peak starting to build .
“ The market is expected to be flat , and it ’ s unlikely any hikes will work for now ,” a market analyst said .
That appears more plausible as market leader Hapag-Lloyd on Feb . 13 pushed Nhava Sheva – New York spot booking rates down for March to $ 1,500 per TEU and $ 1,645 per FEU , about $ 300 per box lower than in early February .
Spot rates on the India – US East Coast trade , meanwhile , were pegged at $ 1,350 per FEU in the week of Feb . 14 , unchanged from the previous week but down from $ 1,520 per FEU a month earlier , according to Platts , a sister product of the Journal of Commerce within S & P Global .
email : bencyvmathew @ gmail . com
“ Ships on all major USEC routings already have a full-load situation for February ,” an executive at a Mumbai-based forwarder told the Journal of Commerce . “ We expect this space crunch to persist through March .”
Sources at Hapag-Lloyd and CMA CGM in India confirmed the temporary spot booking restrictions . CMA CGM also pulled back slots usually allotted to its Indamex partner Cosco Shipping on the most recent voyage .
“ February capacity is tight due to the blanks ,” a CMA CGM Agency ( India ) sales executive who asked not to be identified told the Journal of Commerce .
India – US East Coast spot rates remain in downward slide
Container spot rates from Indian Subcontinent to US East Coast , in USD per FEU
USD per FEU
$ 14,000 $ 12,000 $ 10,000 $ $ 10,000 88,000 169
L
$ 6,000 $ 4,000 $ 2,000
$ 0 L Jul Jan 2024
Jul Feb Jan , 2025 Indian Subcontinent to US East Coast
Source : Platts , S & P Global
© 2025 S & P Global
18 Journal of Commerce | March 3 , 2025 www . joc . com