Hapag, joins Maersk, MOL in $1,000 per FEU rate hikes in January - Corianne Egan, Associate Editor | Dec 16, 2014 5:13PM EST - JOC Hapag-Lloyd became the latest carrier to announce a large general rate increase on trans-Pacific eastbound cargo for January, following Maersk Line and MOL. Hapag-Lloyds GRI will go into effect on Jan. 15, as the carrier attempts to increase rates by $850 per 20-foot container, $1,000 per 40-foot container, $1,125 per 40-foot high-cube container and $1,266 per 45-foot container. The GRI will be put in place on all dry, reefer, flat rack and open top containers from Asia to all U.S. and Canadian destinations. MSC also announced a rate hike, in the form of a peak season surcharge on all eastbound cargo from Asia to the U.S. and Puerto Rico. The PSS will amount to an upcharge of $320 per 20-foot container, $400 per 40-foot container and $450 per 45-foot container. The Hapag-Lloyd GRI announcement is the third in the latest string of rate increases on the trans-Pacific. Maersk Line last week announced a combined GRI and peak season surcharge that amounts to $900 per 20-foot container, $1,000 per 40-foot container, $1,125 per 40-foot high cube container and $1,270 per 45-foot container. MOL also announced a GRI on the lane amounting to the same totals as Maersk. The pattern this fall has been for individual carriers to announce GRIs and for the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement to follow with an announcement saying the increase applies to all carriers. So far there has been no TSA announcement regarding the January GRI. January will be the second month in a row that GRIs of $1,000 per 40-foot container appear on the trans-Pacific, an unusually aggressive one-two punch from the carriers whose effectiveness has yet to be seen but still indicates that carriers see the spot market shaping up in their favor as the traditionally slack season gets under way. Carriers hope that if they can begin the year on a strong note that could carry over into the service contract negotiating period in advance of May 1, when most annual trans-Pacific contracts are renewed. The 15 members of the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement enacted an equally pricey GRI on Dec. 15. Spot rates on the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index, which prices for the week ahead, jumped 24 percent, or $434 per FEU last week in response. Carriers called for the December GRIs after trans-Pacific eastbound rates slipped over 18 percent in the three weeks leading up to Dec. 15. Typically this year, GRIs have acted as a momentary buoy for spot rates, driving them up momentarily before losing ground in subsequent weeks.
Posted on: Wed, 17 Dec 2014 06:09:37 +0000
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