Freight rates, and especially the spot market ones, have fallen sharply since the beginning of the year, driven by declining consumer demand in the US market, according to the digital freight forwarding platform Shifl.

Reaching highs in January 2022, at approximately US$17,000-18,000 / 40′ from China to the US West Coast, container shipping rates have risen to around US$7,000-8,000 / 40′ from April 2022 and, according to indications, will maintain these levels, at least until July 2022.

China’s spot freight rates to the US East Coast fell from a high of US$19,000-20,000 / 40′ in January 2022 to around US$9,000-10,000 / 40′ in March 2022 and according to indications, they are going to maintain these levels, at least until July 2022.

Market reports have shown that ocean freight rates on long-term contracts have risen significantly in 2022, exceeding current container spot freight rates, but it depends on what happens in China.

As Shabsie Levy, Founder and CEO of Shifl, points out, the rates could fall further as US retailers currently have surplus stock with many orders still pending to come from China stuck mainly due to the intermittent lockdowns in China.