• 2021 September 30 10:49

    Xeneta container rates alert: long-term ocean freight rates now up over 90% year-on-year

    Xeneta’s Long-Term XSI® Public Indices revealed yet another monthly hike in long-term ocean freight rates, with global container prices climbing by 3.2%. The development follows a 2.2% increase in August and an unprecedented 28.1% jump in July, leaving rates now standing 91.5% up year-on-year, according to Xeneta's release. What’s more, comments Oslo-based Xeneta, there is little evidence to suggest a weakening of market fundamentals – meaning there could be more pain in store for shippers, with colossal profits looming for carriers.
     
    “This year has seen a unique convergence of COVID-19 disruption, port congestion, strong demand and maxed-out capacity, and that has stoked the flames of record-breaking rates,” explains Xeneta CEO Patrik Berglund. “The global supply chain is under immense pressure and desperate shippers have no choice but to pay up to secure deliveries, or at least try to, ahead of key trading periods such as Christmas. It’s a crazy market out there.”
     
    While Berglund notes that the carriers are “sitting pretty” in this situation – here he points to Maersk recently upgrading its EBITDA estimate from USD8.5-10.5bn to a stunning USD22bn-23bn – he also says shippers are trying new strategies to circumvent one-sided negotiations and retake a sense of control.
     
    “This year we’ve seen the emergence of larger retailers chartering their own vessels to ensure both reliability in the supply chain and a degree of cost control,” he notes. “September saw yet another major shipper resort to what some see as a drastic measure, with the John Lewis Partnership partnering with an as yet unnamed freight forwarder to take on its own ships. This is a direct response to a market in overdrive, but one wonders if this type of approach could signify a new way of working, in the long-term, for shippers sick of being held to ransom.”
     
    For the time being, however, Xeneta says carriers are calling the tune, with major newbuild capacity injections still some way off (around 400 container vessels have been ordered so far in 2021), while a 7-8% growth in global container volume is anticipated. With such a lop-sided playing field carriers are aiming to secure elevated rates by locking customers into more long-term contracts (now 60% of Maersk’s bookings) and hedge future revenue. Some leading players are even offering multi-year deals, with the benefits of additional volume options, or stable, guaranteed shipments.
     
    The latest XSI®, which is based on crowd sourced real-time rates from leading shippers, delivers an in-depth regional breakdown of market fortunes for key trades – with fortunes being the operative word. In Europe imports on the XSI® rose by 3.9% in September, meaning the benchmark has appreciated 132.5% year-on-year. Exports also increased, edging up by 1.3%, now 51.7% higher than this time last year.
     
    In the Far East imports fell for the first time since March, but only by 0.7%. This still leaves the index 49.8% up year-on-year. Exports continued to power along in the right direction, with rates showing a 5.1% increase, up 126.8% against September 2020. Meanwhile, in the US imports rose by just 0.6%, although strong recent growth leaves the benchmark 67.3% up year-on-year. Exports grew by the same margin, with the index now a (relatively modest) 20.7% up against this point last year.
     
    Companies participating in Oslo-based Xeneta’s crowd-sourced ocean and air freight rate benchmarking and market analytics platform include names such as ABB, Electrolux, Continental, Unilever, Nestle, L’Oréal, Thyssenkrupp, Volvo Group and John Deere, amongst others.
     
    About Xeneta

    Xeneta is the leading ocean and air freight rate benchmarking and market intelligence platform transforming the shipping and logistics industry. Xeneta’s powerful reporting and analytics platform provides liner-shipping stakeholders the data they need to understand current and historical market behaviour – reporting live on market average and low/high movements for both short and long-term contracts. Xeneta’s data is comprised of over 280 million contracted container and air freight rates and covers over 160,000 global trade routes. Xeneta is a privately held company with headquarters in Oslo, Norway and regional offices in New York and Hamburg.


2024 April 19

18:02 CMA CGM to strengthen and reshuffle its SEAS1 & SEAS2 services connecting Asia and East Coast South America
17:25 OOCL upgrades Transpacific Latin Atlantic 1/ 2 (TLA1/ 2) service
16:45 The world's two largest hydrogen ships are to be built in Norway
16:15 KEYS Azalea completes first ship-to-ship LNG bunkering in Western Japan
15:40 Port Houston surpasses 1mln TEU mark in Q1 2024
15:29 World's first ammonia dual-fuel Aframaxes to be developed by MISC
14:55 Port of Rotterdam total cargo throughput up 2.0% to 3.3 million TEUs in Q1 2024
14:06 DNV awards certificates for Fortescue’s dual-fuelled ammonia-powered vessel
13:44 Imoto Lines and Marindows launch next-generation zero-emission container ship project
12:41 The Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach complete a comprehensive Green and Digital Shipping Corridor study
12:20 Ulsan Port Authority signs MOU with Pacific Environment to decarbonize shipping ports in Singapore
11:50 Cavotec signs USD 5 million shore power order with global shipping company
11:22 Rio Tinto selects Alfa Laval OceanGlide fluidic air lubrication with a focus on advancing efficient shipping and reducing emissions
10:45 Steerprop selected to supply main propulsion and tunnel thrusters for Canadian Coast Guard multi-purpose vessels program
10:14 ST Engineering AirX and Bureau Veritas sign cooperation agreement to advance Wing-in-Ground technology
09:38 Solar panels at the Port of Valencia will generate 22% of the energy it consumes

2024 April 18

18:02 DEME wins cable installation contracts from Prysmian for IJmuiden Ver Alpha and Nederwiek 1 offshore grid systems
17:31 RINA awarded contract for Carnival Cruise Line 4th and 5th Excel-class ships
17:18 Cepsa and Evos join up for green methanol storage in Spain and the Netherlands
16:48 ClassNK commences joint research project with JAXA on material compatibility evaluation methods for liquefied oxygen
16:24 Panama Canal announces new measures regarding number of transits and maximum draft
15:50 Kongsberg Maritime secures contract to supply propeller systems to Damen Naval for four Anti-Submarine Warfare frigates
15:24 LR to class Torghatten Nord’s hydrogen-powered ferry duo for Arctic sailings
14:04 CMA CGM sells part of the foreign activities of Bolloré Logistics to the Balguerie Group
13:40 Methanol Institute and SEA-LNG unite against EU trade barriers to biomethane and biomethanol fuels
13:23 DP World launches a new Air Tracking feature to its SeaRates platform
12:31 Port of Los Angeles container volume increases 19% to 743,417 TEU in March 2024
12:16 MABUX: Bunker Outlook, Week 16, 2024
12:11 Coastal Sustainability Alliance boosts development and adoption of maritime biofuel in Singapore
11:43 Ocean Network Express launches reduced emissions shipping service
11:23 Wartsila cargo handling and fuel gas supply systems selected for three new Very Large Ethane Gas Carriers
10:45 Singapore plans production of biofuel blends up to B50 in grade
10:25 Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and International Energy Agency сollaborate on maritime energy transition

2024 April 17

18:03 Australia and Singapore partner in a $20 million initiative to help reduce emissions in the maritime sector
17:38 EPS strengthens green collaboration with MPA with six Singapore-registered ammonia dual-fuel newbuilds
17:03 HD Hyundai, Scottish firms to cooperate on offshore wind power
16:16 Hanwha Ocean wins 176.4 bln-won order for 1 LPG carrier
15:46 Maritime Book and Claim System advances pilot study to support first movers in zero-emissions shipping
15:00 Port of Antwerp-Bruges cargo volumes up 2.4% to 70.4 million tonnes in Q1 2023
14:47 DOF Rederi AS sells PSV Skandi Gamma
14:24 PIL, CCS partner on alternative fuels and onboard carbon capture and storage
13:44 Total volume of bunker fuel sales at the port of Fujairah increases by 25.2% to 700,918 m3 in March 2023
12:11 Eureka Shipping announces construction of new cement carrier for Great Lakes trade
11:32 MOL to adopt new system to increase capacity and improve operational efficiency of car carriers
11:12 GTT receives an order for the tank design of eight new LNG carriers
10:43 Thailand's Department of Marine and Coastal Resources takes delivery of a new research vessel
10:27 The United States exported a record volume of natural gas in 2023
09:58 TECO 2030 raises NOK 43 million and partners up with Advait in India

2024 April 16

18:04 HD KSOE attains 73% of annual order target in 100 days
17:31 Anglo-Eastern buys Euronav ship manager
17:06 Navig8 takes delivery of the second of six newbuild MRs with emission reducing technology
16:38 IMO’s Facilitation Committee tackles digitalization and autonomous shipping
16:12 World’s largest car carriers ordered with MAN Energy Solutions propulsion package
15:46 Hapag-Lloyd and Seaspan to retrofit five vessels to methanol propulsion
14:13 Asyad Shipping and OQ8 successfully complete first-of-its-kind blended crude oil delivery from Mina Al Fahal to Duqm Refinery
13:54 Hapag-Lloyd unveils its new Strategy 2030
13:14 Singapore aims for over 1 mln tons of low-carbon methanol bunker supply by 2030
12:43 Trafigura to commercially deploy Daphne Technology’s PureMetrics on LNG carrier for precise MRV and optimisation of GHG emissions
12:15 All 12 people rescued from fire on board Tanzanian-flagged cargo ship in Singapore waters
11:49 Drydocks World steel cutting ceremony marks start of UK Norfolk Vanguard Offshore Wind Platforms project
11:23 North Pacific Green Corridor Consortium aims to decarbonize transportation corridor between Canada, Japan and South Korea
10:48 Wartsila offers new high-performance thruster and propulsion control solution package
10:25 Port of Long Beach container volume up 8.3% to 654,082 TEUs in March 2024
09:58 Kalypso Offshore Energy signs LOI with Royal IHC

2024 April 15

18:04 Container shipping costs of S. Korea-EU route surge 40 pct amid Red Sea crisis
17:21 HMM to expand container ship fleet by 2030
17:09 Singapore retains its position as the world's leading maritime city
16:47 Iran says MSC Aries vessel seized for 'violating maritime laws'
16:24 ICTSI gets PPA OK to operate Iloilo Port
15:21 DEME’s offshore installation vessel ‘Orion’ successfully completes the near 15 MW turbine foundation installation project in Scotland and heads to US