Drewry: World Container Index inches up 1.7%

The World Container Index rose 1.7 percent since last week to $1,465.72 per FEU, according to the latest assessment by London-based Drewry Shipping Consultants.    The World Container Index (WCI) – a composite of container freight rates on eight major routes to and from the United States, Europe and Asia – rose 1.7 percent since last week to $1,465.72 per FEU, according to the latest assessment by London-based analyst Drewry Shipping Consultants.
   Although the composite index ticked up 1.7 percent this week, the reading is still a 19.4 percent decline from the same 2017 period.
   The average composite index of the WCI, assessed by Drewry for year-to-date, is $1,431 per FEU, which is $147 lower than the five-year average of $1,578 per FEU.
   On the Shanghai-New York route, the WCI edged up by $14 per FEU since last week to reach $2,883 per FEU, as tight space in all-water services to the U.S. East Coast helped carriers drive rates up on services to the West Coast. As a result, the rates on the Shanghai-Los Angeles route gained $85 per FEU this week.
   Rates on the Asia-North Europe route were stable this week, while rates on the Shanghai-Genoa trade gathered $36 to reach $1,527 per FEU.
   “We expect rates to jack up on the back of the demand spike before the Chinese New Year holidays” and the Feb. 1 general rate increases, Drewry explained in its assessment.