After several months of relatively flat demand, the ocean freight market has shifted into an early peak season, with pressure building across several key Asian trade lanes.

Space and equipment availability have tightened significantly in recent weeks, and some carriers are now unable to accept bookings for sailings until at least July from Asian origin points, where rising demand is creating additional pressure.

Ocean freight rates on Asia-Europe services are now moving upwards, with carriers announcing General Rate Increases from 1 July. This follows an earlier GRI implemented this month, which had already pushed rates higher.

The scale of the latest increases will vary by route and carrier, but upward rate momentum is expected to continue until at least the end of July. There is also the possibility that current market conditions could extend further, potentially through to China’s Golden Week in October.

At this stage, it remains difficult to determine whether the current disruption is the result of an early peak season, driven by importers front-loading orders due to geopolitical uncertainty, or whether the market is entering a longer period of sustained demand.

With space and equipment availability expected to remain challenging from many Asia origins, customers are strongly encouraged to book as early as possible. Early booking will give the Caledonian Freight team the best opportunity to secure the necessary space and manage shipments as effectively as possible.

For further information, please contact a member of the Caledonian Freight team. In the meantime, we continue to work tirelessly to mitigate supply chain disruption wherever possible and support our customers through the current market conditions.