For the fourth consecutive week, the container shipping freight market has recorded an increase. This is shown by the Drewry World Container Index update of 26 March 2026, whose composite index rose by 5% week on week, reaching $2,279 per 40ft container. The increase is being driven mainly by Asia–Europe and Transpacific routes, with the former showing a more pronounced acceleration than the latter. In the background, the energy crisis triggered by the conflict in the Middle East continues to affect bunker fuel availability and squeeze carriers’ operating margins, with direct repercussions on final freight rates.
At the centre of the pressure on markets is the Strait of Hormuz. Ongoing disruptions in this crucial passage, through which around 20% of global oil flows, have reduced bunker fuel availability in key Asian refuelling hubs. In Singapore and Chinese ports, stocks are thinning, forcing shipping companies to adopt extraordinary operational measures, including slow steaming to limit consumption, alternative bunkering strategies and the application of emergency fuel surcharges. According to Drewry, these measures are set to keep upward pressure on freight rates in the short term.
The most significant impact is being seen on Asia–Europe routes. The Shanghai–Genoa corridor surged by 12% in a single week, pushing the cost to $3,474 per 40ft container, the highest weekly increase among all major global routes analysed. The Shanghai–Rotterdam route also recorded an increase, albeit more modest at 3%, reaching $2,552. The return leg from Rotterdam to Shanghai posted an unexpected 10% rise.
Despite pricing pressure, capacity towards Europe is paradoxically holding steady. According to Drewry’s Container Capacity Insight, only three sailings are scheduled to be cancelled on the Asia–Europe route in the following week, a figure that does not indicate significant supply constraints. Nevertheless, carriers continue to push for further rate increases. Companies such as CMA CGM have already announced plans to introduce new FAK (Freight All Kinds) rates of around $3,500 per 40ft container from 1 April.
On the Transpacific, the trend is also upward, although with different dynamics compared with the European market. Freight rates from China to New York rose by 3% to $3,393 per 40ft container, while those to Los Angeles increased by 4% to $2,686. In this case, carriers are intervening more aggressively on capacity. Drewry’s Container Capacity Insight reports six scheduled sailing cancellations for the following week on both the US East and West Coasts, a reduction in capacity that will help sustain upward pressure on prices in the short term.
The overall picture emerging from Drewry’s analysis leaves little room for expectations of near-term stabilisation. The combined effect of April rate increases, strategic capacity reductions and volatility in bunker costs is fuelling an upward cycle that supply chain operators will need to factor into their logistics planning for the second quarter of 2026.
