07 Jan Mid-January sees mounting surcharges
The new year has seen multiple ocean carriers announce new surcharges, from ‘Labor Interruption Surcharges’ through to ‘Emergency Operational Surcharges’ and more, all due to commence mid-January on the North Europe to US trade lane. These are all due to activate at the same time as the potential second longshore strike along the US East and Gulf coasts and the significant restructuring in liner alliances.
These new surcharges continue the upward trend in costs, as December saw a series of
general rate increases (GRIs) that significantly boosted prices and resulted in shippers on the transpacific eastbound route from Asia into the US west coast paying nearly an additional $1,000 per 40ft after Drewry’s World Container Index (WCIU) recorded a 26% week-on-week hike in the spot rate.
In addition, container spot rates from Asia to the United hit highs in the last weeks of 2024 not seen since the first December of the pandemic-driven rush. This high was driven by a convergence of three factors that influenced retailers and other importers to front-load merchandise, including the probability of a second ILA strike, an early Lunar New Year on 29th January 2025 and the looming threat of tariffs on imports from major US trading partners.
FOLLOW US FOR THE LATEST NEWS!
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.