Container spot freight rates surged again this week; driven by the dual impact of cargo being shipped early to beat tariff deadlines and ongoing shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, the global benchmark index climbed to its highest level since the pandemic peak in 2022.
Drewry’s World Container Index (WCI) rose 9% week-over-week to $4,530 per 40-foot equivalent unit (FEU), with freight rates on the two major transpacific and Asia-Europe routes rising in tandem. Specifically, freight rates on the Shanghai-to-New York route rose 11% to $7,902 per FEU; while rates on the Shanghai-to-Los Angeles route rose 10% to $6,349 per FEU. Drewry data shows that eight sailings on the Trans-Pacific route are scheduled to be canceled next week, highlighting the tight capacity situation. In contrast, only one canceled sailing has been announced on the Asia-Europe route. On this route, freight rates from Shanghai to Rotterdam rose 7% to $4,682 per FEU, while rates from Shanghai to Genoa rose 10% to $6,360 per FEU.
Freightos freight rate data shows a consistent trend. Last week, the freight rate indices for routes from Asia to the U.S. West Coast and East Coast both rose by 8%, reaching approximately $6,200 and $8,000 per FEU, respectively—up 120% and 85% from mid-May. Rates from Asia to Northern Europe reached $4,900 per FEU, a 70% increase over the same period; rates from Asia to the Mediterranean surged to $6,500 per FEU, an 85% increase. Freightos noted that rates on the U.S. East Coast and Mediterranean routes have already surpassed the seasonal peaks seen during the same period last year, while rates to the U.S. West Coast are slightly higher than the 2025 peak.
S&P Global’s Platts Container Rate Index also confirms this surge in freight rates: the index climbed a cumulative 80% over the 30 days ending June 24, reaching its highest level since April 2022.
Faced with soaring freight rates, major shipping companies are seizing the opportunity to lock in the gains from these price hikes. HMM announced a peak season surcharge of $3,000 per FEU effective July 15; CMA CGM raised its all-in freight rate for the Asia-North Europe route to $6,300 per FEU starting July 1, adding a peak season surcharge of $1,000 per TEU; meanwhile, its all-in rates for Mediterranean routes to Algeria have reached as high as $10,200 per FEU.
A surge in rush shipments is the primary driver behind the current rise in freight rates. Faced with potential U.S. tariffs of 10% to 12.5% on goods from dozens of countries—imposed on the grounds of forced labor—importers have been rushing to ship goods early; this trend, compounded by uncertainty regarding market prospects, has driven up cargo volumes.
Lars Jensen, a renowned global container shipping analyst, points out: “The core drivers behind this sharp surge in freight rates are indeed robust demand and fully loaded vessels. The volatility experienced during the pandemic made shipping lines realize that freight rates can fluctuate entirely based on supply and demand—without being rigidly pegged to transport costs—a logic that differs in no way from that of most other industries.”
According to estimates by the shipping consultancy Linerlytica, the growth rate of global container throughput demand currently stands at 7.3%—significantly outpacing the 5.4% growth in fleet capacity—resulting in the widest supply-demand gap seen since late 2024. Furthermore, port congestion has intensified once again; nearly 11% of the global container ship fleet is currently waiting at anchorages outside ports, marking a new high since 2022.
Splash previously reported that Maersk had raised its full-year financial guidance for 2026. Just months ago, the company had warned investors that it could face an underlying EBIT loss of up to $1.5 billion for the year. However, driven by surging freight rates and higher-than-expected cargo demand, Maersk now projects an underlying operating profit of $2 billion to $4 billion for the full year. Its EBITDA guidance has been raised from the previous range of $4.5–$7 billion to $8–$10 billion, while the forecast for global container volume growth has been adjusted upward from 2–4% to approximately 4%.