Drewry Supply Chain Advisors: World Comtainer Index

Our detailed assessment for Thursday, 19 October 2023
The composite index remained stable at $1,364 this week and has dropped by 60% when compared with the same week last year.

The latest Drewry WCI composite index of $1,364 per 40-foot container is now 4% below the average 2019 (pre-pandemic) rates of $1,420 and is the lowest for 3 years.

The average composite index for the year-to-date is $1,720 per 40ft container, which is $957 lower than the 10-year average rates of $2,677 (which was inflated by the exceptional 2020-22 Covid period).

Freight rates on Shanghai to Genoa decreased by 3% or $43 to $1,370 per 40ft container. Similarly rates on Los Angeles to Shanghai decreased by 2% or $20 to $811 per feu. Likewise, rates on Shanghai to Los Angeles decreased marginally by 1% or $17 to $1,979 per 40ft box. Conversely rates on New York to Rotterdam, Rotterdam to Shanghai, Rotterdam to New York and Shanghai to Rotterdam increased by 4%, 3%, 2% and 1% to $703, $476, $1,564 and 1,024 per 40ft container respectively. Meanwhile, rates on Shanghai to New York remain stable. Drewry anticipates East-West spot rates to remain close to current levels, overall, in the upcoming weeks.

If you need spot market container freight rate information on other routes to those below, find out more about our Container Freight Rate Insight (CFRI) online service, which covers over 790 global port pairs (updated monthly).