US-Bound Container Rates Rise While Asia-Europe Softens

Key Takeaway

Drewry’s World Container Index rose 1% to $4,339 per 40ft container in its August 13 assessment, a second consecutive weekly gain from $4,297 the week before. Drewry attributes the move to higher transpacific rates. Across the eight major East-West trades the index covers, the direction was anything but uniform: Shanghai to New York jumped 10% to $8,706 and Shanghai to Los Angeles rose 6% to $6,244, while Shanghai to Genoa fell 8% to $5,080 and Shanghai to Rotterdam dropped 5% to $4,425. Transatlantic rates also rose. Asia to North Europe and the Mediterranean declined.

This Week’s Rates

Route	Rate ($/FEU)	WoW	Direction
Shanghai to New York	$8,706	+10%	Rising
Shanghai to Los Angeles	$6,244	+6%	Rising
Shanghai to Genoa	$5,080	-8%	Softening
Shanghai to Rotterdam	$4,425	-5%	Softening
Drewry WCI composite	$4,339	+1%	Second weekly rise

Source: Drewry World Container Index, assessed August 13, 2026. Rates are per 40ft container. Drewry’s WCI includes specified carrier surcharges; treatment of terminal handling charges varies by route.

What’s Driving the Movement

Transpacific carriers are restricting capacity. Shanghai to New York posted the largest weekly increase of any route in the index. Drewry’s Container Capacity Insight records 10 cancelled sailings in each of the past two weeks on the transpacific, with another seven planned for next week. Drewry says carriers are actively restricting space through blank sailings and expects rates to be less volatile in the coming week as capacity tightens.

A September cost trigger is already announced on the US East and Gulf Coast lanes. Several carriers have announced Panama Canal surcharges covering Asia to USEC and Asia to Gulf Coast, effective September. Canal transit restrictions remain a live constraint on those routings. Amounts and trigger bases differ by carrier, so the surcharge that matters is the one attached to your booking, not the headline.

What is a FAK (Freight All Kinds) rate?

A FAK (Freight All Kinds) rate is a carrier freight rate offered across a broad range of commodity types on a trade lane rather than being priced separately by commodity. It generally refers to the ocean freight component for a defined origin-destination pair and validity period; additional surcharges and local charges may still apply. This week Drewry flagged announced FAK rates of $6,700 to $7,100 per 40ft container on the Asia to Mediterranean trade, effective August 15, while noting that weakening demand raises questions over how sustainable those levels are. For a worked example of how carriers structure these rates and what may sit inside versus on top of the FAK figure, see our lane-by-lane breakdown of the June Asia-Europe FAK rates.

Asia to Europe softened on both legs. Genoa fell 8% and Rotterdam fell 5%. Capacity on the lane is not loosening sharply: Drewry counts three blank sailings announced for next week, the same as the previous week. Drewry expects Asia-Europe rates to hold stable next week.

The latest five-week outlook contains fewer blank sailings than Drewry’s July 24 outlook. Drewry’s Cancelled Sailings Tracker dated August 14 counts 49 cancellations across the major East-West trades for weeks 34 through 38, covering August 17 to September 20. That is a 7% cancellation rate, with 93% of scheduled sailings still expected to operate. By comparison, Drewry’s July 24 five-week outlook counted 57 cancellations, about 8% of planned sailings, although the two editions cover different rolling periods. Transpacific eastbound carries 59% of the latest cancellations, Asia to North Europe and the Mediterranean 27%, and the Transatlantic 14%. Among the major carrier groupings, Gemini Cooperation continues to post the lowest blank sailing rate at 1%.

Intra-Asia moved too. Drewry’s Intra-Asia Container Index rose 6% to $1,028 per 40ft container, a six-week high.

Underneath the rate numbers, Drewry continues to flag security concerns in the Suez Canal and the Strait of Hormuz, restrictions on Panama Canal transits, congestion at Asian ports following typhoon Dolphin, and low-water conditions on the Rhine affecting inland movement across Europe. None of these carried a quantified rate impact in this week’s assessment. Each one is a schedule reliability constraint, and Drewry’s own advice to shippers is to book early and build in additional lead time to reduce the risk of rollovers and transit delays.

When a surcharge effective date, a FAK validity window, and a blank sailing all land on the same booking, the operational impact may appear as a schedule change alongside the eventual cost impact. Walk through how ops teams watch space and schedule changes across carriers in one view.

What This Means for Shippers

Asia to US East and Gulf Coast. Shanghai to New York rose 10% this week, while Panama Canal surcharges are due to take effect on relevant Asia to US East and Gulf Coast routings in September. Pull your open September quotations and confirm whether the surcharge is already priced in, and on what trigger basis each carrier applies it. Drewry expects less volatility next week as capacity tightens, but that does not necessarily mean the current rate level will hold.

Asia to US West Coast. Shanghai to Los Angeles rose 6%, with seven transpacific cancellations already announced for next week. Space availability therefore deserves at least as much attention as the rate increase in the near term. Book earlier than your normal window for late August and early September sailings.

Asia to Mediterranean. Shanghai to Genoa spot rates fell 8% while carriers announced FAK levels of $6,700 to $7,100 effective August 15, and Drewry has questioned whether those levels can be sustained against weakening demand. If your Mediterranean rate is up for renewal, the gap between announced FAK levels and the softening spot market gives you evidence to challenge a proposed increase.

Asia to North Europe. Rotterdam fell 5%, but the FAK levels above cover the Mediterranean trade rather than North Europe. Check what your carrier has actually announced on your lane before assuming the same levels apply.

One composite number is doing poor work describing this market. Transpacific rates climbed by double digits on one lane while Asia-Europe fell by nearly as much on another, and averaging them into a single figure erases both movements. Budget transpacific and Asia-Europe cargo on separate assumptions this week, and read the composite as a summary statistic rather than a lane-level forecast.

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