Freight rates on the Asia-Europe trade continue to fall as flagging demand and rising capacity threaten box-carrier margins.
Rates on the benchmark trade from Shanghai to Rotterdam have dropped by $107 to $1,725 per 40-foot container (feu), according to the World Container Index (WCI).
Some leading operators are attempting to redress the supply-demand balance by cutting services.
Maersk Line and Mediterranean Shipping Co will suspend their Asia-North Europe AE-2/Swan service at the end of the month.
