Transportation Roundup: Fall shipping rates continue to fall

SSGA staff have compiled a round up of current news in the container transportation industry. Click the links below to view the original stories.

Fall is usually peak shipping season, as retailers begin to import more goods for the holidays. In 2022 though, freight rates for a container from China to the West Coast are down 60% from January, around $5,400 per box. The rate is still above pre-pandemic levels and isn’t expected to return to those levels anytime soon, in part due to higher fuel costs. Read more from the Wall Street Journal.

Spot rates continue to fall, with Drewry’s World Container Index dropping by 10% to $4,472 on Thursday. This rate is 57% below the peak of $10,377 exactly one year. Read more here.

The tentative deal on Sept. 15 between major U.S. railroads and unions avoided a railway strike, although some unions are still frustrated with the tentative agreement. Rail workers report not trusting that the tentative agreement will deliver on their needs. Workers are still longing for higher wage increases, paid time off and more flexible scheduling.

Several SSGA members were involved in a cargo shipment from the Port to Duluth to Antwerp, Belgium, earlier this month. The ABB Vanessa arrived at the Port of Duluth on Sept. 11 to pick up smart shipping containers from Nexyst 360. The containers were filled with dark red kidney beans from Chippewa Valley Bean and high-protein fish food from Prairie Aquatech. Nexyst 360 has more on their LinkedIn post. Back in May, Nexyst 360 and Chippewa Valley Bean credited SSGA’s Transportation Go! conference as the catalyst for their historic shipment of kidney beans from the Port of Duluth destined for Europe.