Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2025-11-11 Origin: Site
Shipping rates have experienced a rise followed by a fall in just one month, showing an overall downward trend throughout the year.
The recent suspension of the China-US trade war is a positive signal, but will it suddenly inject more vitality into the demand for shipping containers in trans-Pacific trade?
On October 30, a major announcement came from the Kuala Lumpur economic and trade negotiations: China and the US officially reached a consensus. The 24% reciprocal tariffs will continue to be suspended for one year, while the US will suspend the Section 301 investigation into China's maritime logistics and related port surcharges, and China will simultaneously suspend countermeasures.
This "two-way relaxation" has pressed the "buffer button" for the previously tense bilateral trade.
Looking back at October, shipping rates soared but with limited magnitude and sustainability, and began to decline in early November.
As of November 6, the average spot rate from Shanghai/Ningbo, China to Los Angeles, USA dropped by 44% year-on-year to $2,565 per 40-foot container. The spot rate to New York on the US East Coast fell by 42% year-on-year to $3,100 per 40-foot container.
From October to November, container prices on the US West Coast route (Shanghai/Ningbo - Los Angeles) shifted from rising to falling. According to the latest data collected, the price of a 40-foot container has dropped from $3,315 a week ago to $2,565. At the beginning of October, the price for a 40-foot container on this route was still $1,700, and it has now fallen back to $2,565. Prices are expected to continue declining in the future.
Container prices on the US East Coast route (Shanghai/Ningbo - New York) also rose first then fell within a month. Currently, the price of a 40-foot container has decreased from $3,375 two weeks ago to $3,100, which is basically the same as in August this year. Overall, shipping rates at the end of this year are significantly lower than at the beginning, showing an overall downward trend throughout the year.
For the full year, shipping rates have followed a trend of "fall first, rise then fall again," with two peaks in mid-May and mid-October. The outcome of the China-US negotiations in Geneva on May 12 brought the trade war into a 90-day suspension period. At that time, shippers rushed to take advantage of this window, driving up shipping rates. The mid-October rate increase was mainly due to two factors: large-scale capacity cuts and Christmas peak season demand.
Currently, the decline in spot rates coincides with the drop in trans-Pacific trade volume. The latest data shows that container shipping demand from China to the US in August decreased by 13% year-on-year.
