Drewry World Container Index – 31 October 2024
The Drewry World Container Index, a composite of container freight rates on eight major routes to/from the US, Europe and Asia, increased 4% to $3,213 per feu this week.
- The Drewry WCI composite index increased 4% to $3,213 per feu, which is 69% below the previous pandemic peak of $10,377 in September 2021 but 126% more than the average 2019 (pre-pandemic) of $1,420.
- The average YTD composite index is $4,017 per feu, which is $1,178 higher than the 10-year average of $2,839 (inflated by the exceptional 2020-22 Covid period).
- Freight rates from Shanghai to Genoa skyrocketed 11% or $352 to $3,648 per feu and those from Shanghai to Rotterdam increased 8% or $264 to $3,396 per feu. Rates from Shanghai to Los Angeles and Los Angeles to Shanghai also increased 1% to $4,839 and $718 per feu, respectively, whereas those from Rotterdam to Shanghai decreased 1% or $5 to $543 per feu. Meanwhile, rates from Shanghai to New York, New York to Rotterdam and Rotterdam to New York remained stable. After a decline since August, spot rates ex-China increased this week, and we expect this trend to continue as the Christmas rush intensifies.
- Note: Due to the highly volatile market, Drewry revised the methodology of WCI in Week 20, 2021 by changing the criteria for ‘data outliers’ (data excluded from ‘average rate index’ calculation). We will reject data points only if they are 30% higher or lower than median instead of 20% higher or lower previously.
If you need spot market container freight rate information on other routes than those mentioned above, you can find them in our Container Freight Rate Insight (CFRI) online service, which covers over 790 global port pairs (updated monthly).
For information on Drewry’s extensive ocean freight cost benchmarks for both spot rates and contract rates, visit https://www.drewry.co.uk/supply-chain-advisors/supply-chain-expertise/ocean-freight-cost-benchmarks
