China-US Container Rates Peak as Alternative Gulf Routes Ease Hormuz Pressures

Spot container freight rates from China to the United States have reached a peak after rising more than 330 percent since late February, according to benchmark data from freight analytics platform Xeneta. Shipments from China to the US West Coast rose 344 percent to $8,346 per 40-foot container, while rates to the US East Coast climbed 335 percent to $11,523 per container. The price spread between the two destinations widened from $772 prior to the conflict to $3,177 per box.

Data from cargo tracking group Kpler indicates that total clearance through the Strait of Hormuz averaged 11.5 million barrels per day on a seven-day basis, down from a baseline of 17.1 million barrels per day. Regional export volumes remained at 21.7 million barrels per day, roughly 7 percent below historical averages. Approximately 40 percent of those volumes bypassed the strait by loading at the UAE Port of Fujairah or conducting ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman.

The UAE National Association of Freight and Logistics reported that the landed cost of moving cargo into the Gulf region is running three to five times above baseline levels. The organization stated that these added expenses stem from land transport fees and rerouting penalties rather than standard tariff schedules.

Xeneta projects that spot container prices to the US East Coast will retreat to between $6,000 and $7,000 per 40-foot container over the next three months, while West Coast rates are expected to fall to between $4,500 and $5,500 during the same period.