Global shipping consultant Drewry expects transpacific freight rates to rise in the coming weeks due to “anticipated tariff hikes under the incoming Trump Administration.”
Drewry’s year-to-date World Container Index shows 40-foot containers costing $3,946 on average, more than $1,000 higher than the 10-year average of $2,867.
As of Jan. 9, rates from Shanghai, China, to Los Angeles, Calif., “increased 13% or $647 to $5,476 per 40-foot container,” according to Drewry’s index, which also reports that rates from Shanghai to New York have climbed 10% to $7,085 per 40-foot container.
“Demand in the eastbound Asia to North America container market is growing briskly,” Simon Heaney, Drewry’s senior manager, container research, told MTD in May 2024.
“Asia-West Coast traffic is up 26% year-over-year. Some of this is due to a low base in 2023, but the growth rates are superior to other major trading corridors."
Based in the United Kingdom, Drewry also has offices in China, India and Singapore.
