Container freight rates end year on a high note

Container freight rates have ended the year in positive territory.

Spot rates on the Asia-Europe trade spiked pre-Xmas on the back of rate increases and stronger-than-expected demand.

Freight rates on the benchmark Shanghai-to-Genoa trade have rocketed by more than 30%.

They rose by $558 to $2,372 per 40-foot container unit (feu) for the week ending 19 December, placing them 43% above than a year ago, according to the World Container Index (WCI).