The spot average container shipping market opens 2026 with a further decline. In the week of 15 January, the global composite index stood at USD 2,445 per feu, down 4% from USD 2,557 the previous week and 37% lower year on year. The trend reflects seasonally weak demand after the holiday period and early signs of normalisation on Asia–Europe routes, linked to the gradual resumption of transits through the Suez Canal.
The adjustment is particularly evident on export routes from China to the main consumer markets. Services between China and the European Union show a widespread decline on headhaul traffic. The Shanghai–Rotterdam route is quoted at USD 2,763, down 3% week on week and 35% compared with a year earlier, while Shanghai–Genoa stands at USD 3,839, with a more limited weekly reduction of 1% and a 25% annual fall. On the opposite leg, backhaul rates from Europe to China record a slight technical rebound: Rotterdam–Shanghai rises to USD 513, up 2% on the week and broadly stable year on year.
The correction is even more pronounced on transpacific routes, which emerge as the main source of pressure on the global index. The Shanghai–Los Angeles service falls to USD 2,909, with a weekly contraction of 7% and a 44% drop compared with January 2025. The decline is sharper still on the US East Coast, where the Shanghai–New York route slides by 10% in a single week to USD 3,568, marking a 48% year-on-year decrease. Here too, the backhaul shows an opposite dynamic: Los Angeles–Shanghai climbs to USD 732, with a 2% weekly increase and a slight improvement on last year.
On transatlantic routes the picture appears more balanced. Headhaul traffic from Europe to the United States records a moderate decline, with Rotterdam–New York at USD 1,634, down 3% on the week and 42% year on year. The return flow moves against the trend: New York–Rotterdam rises to USD 989, up 2% week on week and 19% higher than the same period in 2025, the only route among those monitored to show a significant positive annual variation.
Analysis of weekly movements highlights how the fall in the composite index was driven mainly by Asia–US routes. The largest absolute reductions are concentrated on Shanghai–New York, down USD 389, and Shanghai–Los Angeles, down USD 223, followed by a USD 77 decline on Shanghai–Rotterdam. On the upside, increases are limited to 2% technical rebounds on backhaul legs, with no signs of a genuine trend reversal. The route closest to stability is Shanghai–Genoa, with a limited weekly variation and modest deviations.
The operating context helps to explain the current phase of weak freight rates. According to Drewry’s Red Sea Diversion Tracker, 26 container vessels transited the Suez Canal in the week ending 11 January, compared with ten the previous week. These included test transits by large vessels of over 8,000 teu operated by carriers such as Cma Cgm and Msc. Although volumes continuing to divert around the Cape of Good Hope remain high, at 175 weekly transits, the gradual increase in Suez passages could reduce transit times and raise effectively available capacity. In a context of still cautious demand, this factor risks exerting further downward pressure on spot freight rates in the coming weeks, particularly on Asia–Europe and Asia–North America corridors.
P.R.
