Shippers “should not panic” despite surge in Middle East ocean spot rates

“Unlike the airfreight market, the container shipping market has not seen a significant fall in capacity after the start of the Iran war, with the exception of capacity to and from the Gulf,” said Philip Damas, Head of Drewry’s logistics practice. “Therefore, we believe that the increase in ocean rates on non-Middle East-connected routes will be manageable and shippers should not panic,” he added.

Drewry Container Freight Rate Insight data shows that, on Middle East-connected routes only, ocean rates are undergoing Covid-level volatility and currently even higher freight rates – see chart. Even then, rates may soften as some opportunistic pricing adjusts.

On all routes, Drewry cautions beneficial cargo owners that timely rate data and market insight are crucial to managing rising bunker surcharges costs.  With superior market intelligence and bunker policies, they can better anticipate and contain fuel surcharges and ultimately mitigate overall rate increases. Drewry has recently launched a BAF forecasting service which helps shippers budget their spend.

Full benchmarking data on spot ocean freight rates are available to shippers with access to Drewry Container Freight Rate Insight. Combined with Drewry’s renowned ocean data products, shippers are fully equipped to negotiate the most-economical solutions for their freight transportation budgets.