In Week 39, the SCFI closed at 3,686.62 points, snapping an eight-week winning streak. US West Coast rates came in at $7,463/FEU (-1.3% WoW); US East Coast at $10,497/FEU (-0.8% WoW). Europe printed $2,313/TEU (-4.6% WoW) and the Mediterranean $3,065/TEU (-1.9% WoW). The pullback on US lanes is not a reversal but a breather after a sharp run-up: low Panama water levels, rerouting, and capacity discipline continue to provide a floor. Europe, by contrast, remains under pressure from tepid demand and a steady flow of new vessel deliveries.
The ninth round of China-US consultations yielded a $30 billion-for-$30 billion reciprocal tariff reduction framework, with the truce window pushed out to early 2027. The takeaway for shippers is not immediate duty relief but a material de-risking of the Q4 booking window — uncertainty gives way to a steady, extendable runway through January. Hysun’s projected cadence: a pre-Golden Week rush, a late-October replenishment wave, and a final pre-Christmas push. On that path, US rates carry more upside than downside.
On the equipment side, China’s container manufacturing sector is running well below capacity, so new boxes are plentiful at source. Hysun equipment tracking data indicates that at the port level, shortages persist: in Shanghai and Ningbo,40HCCW and reefers are tight ahead of the holiday; empty-container turnaround in North China remains sluggish; and Southwest ports are feeling the squeeze. For the US Pacific Northwest and European inland destinations, waiting on port repositioning is a losing bet — local leasing or one-way boxes are the more dependable play.
Hysun Inventory List Week 40:
