The price of container freight from Shanghai to various destinations around the world rose last week as evident by the latest figures from the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), published by the Shanghai Shipping Exchange.
The index rose by 1.9% to 1,890.77 last week, following a 1.5% increase the previous week.
Before the war in the Middle East broke out, the index stood at 1,333.11.
On Thursday, data from the World Container Index (WCI), compiled by the consulting firm Drewry and based on a 40-foot container, showed an increase of 0.9% to $2,308.78.
The index has risen for six consecutive weeks as the situation in the Middle East continues to force shipping companies to sail in a wide arc around the Red Sea.
The SCFI index peaked in early January 2022 at 5,109.60, while the most recent significant low was 931.89 in the week ending October 27, 2023.
If your cargo is time-sensitive, February just made the choice clearer.
We’ve added transit time into the Maxmodal indices — and the picture changed.
Rail is getting faster.
Sea is getting cheaper.
But they are not converging.
They are diverging.
Rail = speed
Sea = cost
And this is no longer a temporary imbalance.
It’s becoming the new structure of the market.
Full February report
MSC Mediterranean Shipping Companyextended its dominance in February, with its fleet capacity surpassing 7.2 million TEU , equivalent to approximately 21.4 percent of the entire global container ship fleet.
The Geneva-based group now operates 980 vessels in active service, of which 727 ships totaling 4.55 million TEU are owned outright and 253 ships accounting for 2.65 million TEU are chartered. A further 2.18 million TEU remains on order, one of the highest orderbook-to-fleet ratios among the top ten carriers.
Despite this scale, MSC’s fleet is among the oldest operated by any major carrier, with an average vessel age approaching 17 years. This contrasts sharply with Evergreen, which runs the youngest fleet among the top 20 carriers at an average age of 9.3 years across nearly 240 ships totaling close to 2 million TEU. Wan Hai Lines ranks second at 9.4 years and HMMthird at 9.6 years, having recently crossed the 1 million TEU capacity milestone.
DP World has signed a five-year agreement with Suzano, one of the world's largest pulp and paper producers, to manage warehouse and production line supply operations at a facility in Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, Espírito Santo.
The contract expands DP World's contract logistics footprint in Brazil and reinforces its integrated approach to port and inland logistics.
The nearly 5,000 square metre facility is embedded within Suzano's Consumer and Tissue division manufacturing plant and became operational in February.
DP World's scope of work covers inbound receiving, inventory management, production line replenishment, and outbound distribution of finished tissue products including toilet paper, napkins and paper towels.
The facility supports daily production of approximately 19,000 bales, with inbound handling capacity of up to 152 tonnes per day and outbound distribution capacity of 128 tonnes per day.
Distribution serves consumer markets across Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Brazil's Central-West region.
The agreement extends a longstanding commercial relationship between the two companies at the Port of Santos, where DP World manages Brazil's largest and most modern pulp export warehouse, with annual handling capacity of up to five million tonnes.
Fabio Siccherino, CEO of DP World in Brazil, framed the deal as a demonstration of the company's ability to connect port operations, warehousing and inland distribution into a coherent logistics chain.
Nilton Sampaio, Executive Supply Chain Manager at Suzano, described the arrangement as part of a broader effort to build a more agile and sustainable logistics operation.
DP World's Santos terminal recorded 1.3 million TEUs in 2025, a new operational record surpassing the 1.25 million TEUs handled in 2024.
Across Brazil, the company now operates nearly 100,000 square metres of contract logistics capacity.
Since entering the Brazilian market in 2013, DP World has invested R$3 billion in port infrastructure, logistics and multimodal connectivity.
The price of container freight from Shanghai to several destinations around the world rose last week.
This is shown by the latest figures from the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), published by the Shanghai Shipping Exchange.
The index rose by 6.5% to 1333.11 last week. The increase follows six weeks of continuous decline. There were no figures from the SCFI index last week due to the Chinese New Year celebrations.
On Thursday, data from the World Container Index (WCI), compiled by consultancy Drewry on Thursday and applicable to a 40-foot container, showed a 1.1% drop from the previous week.
The SCFI index peaked in early January 2022 at 5109.60, while the most recent significant low was 931.89 in the week leading up to October 27, 2023.
Port of Auckland has released its half-year results reporting solid financial and operational performance across its key business segments and confirming it remains on track to meet full-year targets.
Revenue for the period reached NZD 204.3 million, an increase of NZD 8.8 million or 4.5 percent on the first half of FY25.
Underlying net profit after tax came in at NZD 53.8 million, up NZD 11.8 million or 28.1% on the comparable prior period.
The Port of Auckland Board declared an interim dividend of NZD 26 million to Auckland Council on the back of these results.
Volume growth was a primary driver of the improved performance. The Container Terminal averaged 16,800 TEU per week, contributing to total half-year throughput of close to 500,000 TEU.
Car import volumes rebounded strongly, rising 22 percent year-on-year, while bulk and breakbulk cargo reached 1.7 million tonnes and vehicle throughput totalled 100,000 units across the period.
Alongside revenue growth, the port maintained firm control over its cost base, with direct operating expenses down 3% on the same period last year.
CEO Roger Gray attributed the results to operational discipline and the safe management of higher cargo volumes, and pointed to emerging signs of broader economic strengthening in the Auckland region as a positive indicator for the second half of the financial year.
PSA Antwerp has marked a major milestone in its Project Emerald modernization programme with the arrival of five new mega ship-to-shore (STS) cranes at Europa Terminal.
Built to handle the world's largest container vessels, the cranes are the biggest STS units ever ordered for the Port of Antwerp-Bruges. Their arrival strengthens Europa Terminal's readiness for the next generation of ultra-large container ships.
Boosting Capacity and Performance
Each crane will stand 52 metres tall and offer an outreach of 71.8 metres, allowing them to serve vessels up to 26 containers wide. With a dual-hoist lifting capacity of up to 112 tonnes, the cranes will improve berth productivity, operational efficiency and service reliability.
The new equipment forms a core part of Project Emerald, a joint initiative between PSA Antwerp and the Port of Antwerp-Bruges to modernise Europa Terminal and expand its handling capacity.
Advancing Safety and Technology
The cranes feature advanced anti-sway systems, remote diagnostics, high-precision controls and integrated digital monitoring. Operators will work in ergonomically designed cabins and use virtual reality-based training tools to enhance safety and skills development.
Integrated lashing platforms allow coning and deconing activities to take place on elevated platforms. This separates lashing teams from terminal traffic and reduces ground-level risk.
Supporting Sustainable Operations
Aligned with PSA's sustainability strategy, the cranes use energy-efficient electric drives, regenerative power systems and smart-grid compatibility. These features reduce energy consumption and emissions during vessel handling.
Project Emerald Progress
The crane delivery marks a key milestone in Phase 1 of Project Emerald. The programme also includes deepening, reorienting and extending the quay wall to accommodate larger vessels.
Project Emerald is expected to increase Europa Terminal's capacity by 800,000 TEUs annually while enhancing efficiency, reliability and sustainability. The cranes are scheduled to become operational in the second half of 2026, following assembly, testing and safety checks.
The proposed acquisition of ZIM Integrated Shipping by Hapag-Lloyd is raising strategic questions for transpacific shippers and for MSC.
A key issue is the existing vessel-sharing agreement (VSA) between ZIM and MSC on Asia–US East Coast services. If ZIM is absorbed into Hapag-Lloyd’s network, the future of these joint services becomes uncertain. They could either be integrated into Hapag-Lloyd’s structure or discontinued.
For shippers, this creates uncertainty around service continuity, capacity availability, and routing options on the transpacific trade. For MSC, the potential loss of cooperation with ZIM may require network adjustments or the launch of replacement services to maintain market presence.
Overall, the takeover could reshape competitive dynamics and capacity deployment on key Asia–North America routes, with implications for service structure and market balance.
Hapag-Lloyd has agreed to pay $4.2Bn to acquire ZIM in the largest carrier consolidation move since 2017 when COSCO acquired OOCL. The deal will still require regulatory approvals and triggered a protest strike at Zim’s head office in Israel over the weekend. It comes as carriers’ ability to halt the rate slump will be tested again via another GRI push planned on 1 March despite the weaker cargo demand after the Chinese New Year holidays. The transpacific route is most at risk as carriers are inexplicably adding more transpacific capacity this year despite the weakening demand, setting the stage for a potential rate war. In contrast, Transatlantic capacity will be cut in response to the lower demand.
Maersk has made another U-turn as it diverts the first vessel scheduled to make the eastbound Suez transit on the MECL back to the Cape route last week, putting their plans to return to the Suez in doubt. Adverse weather conditions at the Bay of Biscay last week continues to disrupt ship schedules in and out of Europe, but it fails to explain Maersk’s U-turn as the ship was already in Mediterannean waters before it was redirected to turn south to take the longer Cape route.
Pilbara Ports delivered a total monthly throughput of 67.9 million tonnes for January 2026, a 12 percent increase compared to January 2025 and marks the highest January on record.
This figure can be attributed to a series of targeted operational changes implemented at the Port of Port Hedland in recent months.
Operational changes included revised vessel movement guidelines for ebb-tide departures, creating sailing opportunities for an additional 10 large vessels.
Together with ongoing improvements to Dynamic Under Keel Clearance, these changes have enabled vessels to utilize available sailing windows, safely maximize cargo carriage, and contribute to increased overall shipping volumes.
The Port of Port Hedland achieved a monthly throughput of 50 Mt, of which 49.2 Mt was iron ore exports. This was a seven percent increase of total throughput compared to January 2025.
Imports through the Port of Port Hedland totalled 220,000 tonnes, an increase of 60% compared to January 2025.
The Port of Dampier delivered a total throughput of 14.1 Mt, a 19% increase from January 2025. Imports through the Port of Dampier totalled 122,000 tonnes, an increase of 6% from January 2025.
Several factors influence the fluctuation of throughput, including changes in market conditions, port maintenance operations, and proponent needs.
