Container spot freight rates jumped again this week, pushing global benchmarks to their highest levels since the pandemic-era peak of 2022, as tariff-driven cargo frontloading combined with lingering disruption around the Strait of Hormuz.
Drewry’s World Container Index rose 9% week on week to $4,530 per 40ft container, lifted by gains on both the transpacific and Asia-Europe trades. Rates from Shanghai to New York climbed 11% to $7,902 per feu, while Shanghai to Los Angeles rose 10% to $6,349 per feu. Drewry recorded eight blank sailings scheduled on the transpacific for the coming week, a sign of tight capacity. Asia-Europe told a different story: just one blank sailing was announced on that trade, where Shanghai to Rotterdam rose 7% to $4,682 per feu and Shanghai to Genoa rose 10% to $6,360 per feu.
Freightos data pointed the same way. Its Asia-US West Coast and East Coast indices each rose 8% last week, to roughly $6,200 and $8,000 per feu respectively, increases of 120% and 85% since mid-May.
Pricing does not have to be tethered to cost
Asia-North Europe rates reached $4,900 per feu, up 70% over the same stretch, while Asia-Mediterranean hit $6,500 per feu, an 85% climb. Freightos said east coast and Mediterranean rates have already pushed past last year’s seasonal peaks, with west coast pricing running just above its 2025 high.
S&P Global’s Platts Container Index corroborated the surge, climbing 80% over the 30 days to June 24 to its highest level since April 2022.
Carriers moved to bank the gains. HMM introduced a $3,000 per 40ft peak season surcharge effective 15 July. CMA CGM lifted its Asia-North Europe freight-all-kinds rate to $6,300 per 40ft from 1 July, adding a $1,000 per teu peak season surcharge, while its Mediterranean FAK rates reached as high as $10,200 per 40ft for Algeria-bound cargo.
Frontloading has been the dominant driver. Importers have been pulling cargo forward ahead of a threatened US tariff of 10-12.5% on dozens of countries over forced labour concerns, and amid uncertainty
“These sharp increases do appear driven by strong demand and full ships,” commented Lars Jensen, the world’s most famous container analyst, via LinkedIn.
“What the pandemic disruptions taught the carriers was that pricing can follow supply/demand and does not have to be tethered to cost. This is no different than in many other industries,” Jensen added.
Linerlytica estimates global teu-mile demand is currently expanding by 7.3%, comfortably ahead of fleet supply growth of 5.4%, producing the widest demand-supply gap since late 2024. Congestion has also returned with force, with almost 11% of the world’s containership fleet currently waiting outside ports, the highest level since 2022.
Splash reported earlier this week on Maersk upping its full-year financial forecast.
Only months ago, the Danish shipping giant warned investors it could post an underlying EBIT loss of as much as $1.5bn this year. Now, after a sustained surge in freight rates and stronger-than-expected cargo demand, Maersk expects to deliver an underlying operating profit of between $2bn and $4bn. Underlying EBITDA guidance has been lifted to $8bn-$10bn from a previous range of $4.5bn-$7bn, while the company’s outlook for global container demand has been raised to around 4% growth this year from an earlier forecast of 2% to 4%.
