A drop in spot rates appears to be falling more rapidly than had been expected. As noted recently by Stifel analyst Ben Nolan, “Management indicated that… the downward softening has been much steeper and less orderly in the past two months.”
The steepest decline has been in the Asia-West Coast market. Clarksons Securities analyst Frode Mørkedal said, “Spot rates continue to plummet… the Shanghai-U.S. West Coast corridor has seen the most significant adjustment.”
Over the past six months, the Freightos Baltic Daily Index (FBX) China-West Coast assessment has fallen 76%, to $3,799 per 40-foot equivalent unit as of 16 September. In the same period, the Drewry Shanghai-Los Angeles assessment is down 57%.