Export Growth
19 May 2025
Container bookings and prices surge
Written by Greg Wittbecker
It comes as no surprise that a container feeding frenzy has ensued from China to the U.S. West Coast.
Major carrier Hapag-Lloyd reported that demand is so strong they are only allocating space to customers who signed long-term contracts.
Container-tracking software provider Vizion said average bookings for the seven days ended on Wednesday, May 14th, soared 277% to 21,530 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) from the 5,709 TEU average for the week ended May 5.
Spot rates from Shanghai to Los Angeles shot up by 16% from the prior week to $3,136 per 40-foot container, according to maritime consultancy Drewry. That is less than half what rates were a year ago, but observers see rates climbing to as high as $6,000 by June 1.
Why it matters
This surge in bookings could cause bottlenecks, with containers getting stripped and shipped from the Los Angeles/Long Beach ports. Although the ports are used to handling the higher volumes, the renewed pace still requires some careful coordination with truck crews, rail movements, and terminal staffing. That could cause delays – and heartburn – for importers who will face demurrage charges while waiting for containers to be emptied or transshipped east.
The rise in underlying freight costs, layered atop still-active 30% duties on Chinese goods, is something that can’t be ignored. It will hit industry, as well as the consumer, sooner rather than later.
