Industry: "Capacity on US-China routes is fully booked"

Golden Ten Data reported on June 17 that Jiang Lei, General Manager of Zhejiang Xinqiaoyuan International Logistics Co., Ltd., stated that since May, the China-US shipping routes have been fully booked, with tight space across all lines in East and South China, frequent container rollovers, and June slots have basically been booked out, marking an overall return to the peak season’s tight market conditions. At the end of April, the freight rate for a 40-foot container from Ningbo to ports on the US West Coast was about $2,900, and about $3,900 to ports on the US East Coast. After several rounds of price increases, the freight rate for the US West Coast route is now close to $6,300, and the US East Coast route is close to $7,500. Industry insiders explained that on the demand side, US inventories are low, creating a need for restocking. On the supply side, more than 300,000 TEU of shipping capacity is stuck in the Persian Gulf due to the Middle East situation; meanwhile, the delayed reopening of the Red Sea means cargo ships still need to take detours, lowering turnover rates and effectively reducing supply, while slower vessel speeds also affect overall shipping capacity, further intensifying the supply-demand imbalance.