We are expecting the prices for Container Freight to remain high for at least the next 18-months if not two years. Companies that ship products, components and raw materials via this method need to be prepared for high prices and rate increases at the beginning of the Summer, this pricing is expected across multiple trade lanes.
This anticipated increase in Sea Freight is not our doing, it is the carriers profiteering.
Ocean carriers are preparing for the usual and expected peak season for customary price increases and we, Amco, as shippers are expecting even higher prices. We’ve seen some stability in the market after hikes of up to 200% in the last six months of 2020, General Rate Increases (GRIs) will be rolled out effective 1st June 2021.
A Chinese forwarder was quoted as saying t”he best rate we could get for a 40-foot container from Shanghai to Felixstowe for the end of May was $14,000, plus an equipment guarantee of $1,500″.
A compromise we have developed it to use Road Freight along the Silk Road. Just over three weeks ago we were asked to transport a high volume of Gazebos from Changsha (China) to Scotland (England) in just 18 days.
Road Freight from China
The door-to-door road transportation service between China and EU countries takes around 14 to 18 days, depending on the destination. Compare this to container ships which take 35 to 56 days (notwithstanding the container shortage issue and price increases), that is possibly five or six times cheaper than Air Freight, which can be 6 to 16 days in transit.
The team at Amco can get a vehicle from Shanghai to Manchuria (a distance of approximately 3100km in three days (using team drivers), Moscow in nine days, and for the final leg Moscow to London, in five days giving us a total transit time of 17 days. Amco Silk Road Freight follows a similar route to Rail Freight.
If you have the need to move goods from China to the EU or the UK and not sure what the best solution is, give us a call and we will discuss your options, be it Air, Rail, Road or Sea.
+44 (0) 1905 758 000
sales@amco-group.co.uk