The cost of transporting containers continues to decline. The global container index – showing the price for 8 major routes to the US, Europe and Asia – is below $ 8,000.
The World Container Index (WCI) fell another 1.2 percent last week to USD 7,945.31 for a 40-foot container. This is the lowest level since June last year, but 62 percent higher than last year on the same date.
Solar panels
The diagram below shows the price growth of a 40-foot container transport from Shanghai to Rotterdam. In the last 3 months, prices have fallen in 10 weeks, now for 7 consecutive weeks and in the last 12 weeks for 11 weeks.
The cost of transporting a container to Rotterdam fell 2 percent last week from $ 268 to $ 10,577.
Transportation prices to Rotterdam have risen sharply since the eruption of the Corona crisis, and in October 2021 reached an all-time high of nearly $ 15,000. Since then, prices have continued to fall. At the beginning of 2020, the cost of transporting a 40-foot container from China to the Netherlands was still fluctuating between US $ 1,500 and US $ 2,000.
Chinese manufacturers carry about 800 to 900 solar panels per 40-foot container. Large format solar panels with high power can only hold about 600 to 700 solar panels in a container. As a result, transportation costs for a solar panel have in some cases increased to more than $ 15 per solar panel since February 2020.
Impact Locking Shanghai is not yet knownMarsk, the world’s largest shipping company, predicts the end of March Increase in transportation cost The world’s largest port, Shanghai, is expected to close due to the closure of the Chinese metropolis. In late March, the local government decided to completely shut down the entire city for the first time since the Corona crisis erupted. The zero-govt approach can now count on criticism from more and more residents, and only initially 4 days lockdown announcedThus, many residents do not buy enough food and drink. Disabling According to market analysts, the Chinese government in Beijing should soon collect their cargo, including refrigerated containers, from the port of Shanghai. But blocking trucking and storage services is a challenge for exporters. Failure to present a negative COVID-19 test will result in fewer trucks to and from Shanghai as other Chinese cities restrict access to drivers from Shanghai. |
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