February 24, 2025 – Container spot freight rates on the major east-west liner trades experienced another week of decline, as slack demand continued to depress pricing. The Drewry’s World Container Index’s (WCI) composite global rate showed a week-on-week decline of 10%, to $2,795 per 40ft, dragging overall rates down to a level last seen in April last year. It was a bad week for transpacific carriers, which saw spot rates to both the U.S. east and west coasts decline by double-digit amounts and, for the first time in months, steeper falls than on Asia-Europe routes. The WCI’s reading for Shanghai-Los Angeles saw a week-on-week decline of 11%, to $3,888 per 40ft, while the Shanghai-New York leg fell 13%, to $5,126 per 40ft, with one source in China suggesting carriers are increasingly competing for cargo on the routes, leading to the spot rate price-cutting. The WCI spot rate on the headhaul Rotterdam-New York leg also fell week on week, by 3%, to $2,394 per 40ft.