Global Freight Market Insights

Impact your business with timely information on global freight trends that could affect capacity availability, pricing, and more. Create and download custom reports by adding your preferred ocean and air trade lanes—then, check back monthly for updates.

Updated on March 16, 2023

The following information is built on market data from public sources and C.H. Robinson’s information advantage—based on our experience, data, and scale. Use these insights to stay informed, assist with decision making to potentially mitigate risk, and hopefully help avoid disruptions to your supply chain.

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Global Market Overview

Top Story: Ship smarter, worldwide: 10 Strategies for Success
aerial view of the front end of a container ship at sea 

Streamline, save, and strategize across every border with these action-oriented tactics that maximize efficiencies and performance.

1) Leverage cargo consolidation

Few companies can fill a container with their own freight. Work with a freight consolidator to get better rates and increase cargo security.

2) Purchase cargo insurance

Understanding the risks and purchasing the right type of insurance can help protect the value of the goods you ship globally.

3) Benefit from transportation provider’s TMS

Achieve continuous improvements in real time by using a provider that has a single system TMS architecture that works across all regions and covers all types of transportation. 

4) Redefine your shipping strategy

Develop a plan to spend more on shipping but less on inventory, storage, returns and other costs by shipping smaller quantities more frequently. 

5) Create a risk management strategy

Identify and understand the risk types, probabilities, and potential costs to buy the appropriate amount of ocean cargo insurance.

6) Integrate to a single TMS

Integrate to a single transportation provider’s TMS to connect with suppliers and carriers globally, without having to integrate each one of them separately to your system.

7) Effectively use Incoterms®

These rules define the responsibilities of sellers and buyers for the delivery under sales contract, and they establish where the transfer of risk takes place. Understanding how to use them can help you save money.

8) Work with a customs expert

A customs expert can help you navigate each country’s compliance requirements with their own specific set of customs rules, governmental regulations, VAT, duty rate calculations, and payment plans. 

9) Leverage transportation provider's BI

Leverage your transportation provider’s business intelligence reporting and analytics to improve your supply chain performance. 

10) Utilize PO management

Manage shipment windows, work with overseas vendors to coordinate bookings, manage exceptions, collect and distribute documents, and provide reporting at the shipment PO/line item. 

Work with C.H. Robinson to learn more about how you can increase savings in your global supply chain.

 

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Air Freight Update

Asia

After a slow uptick in demand after the Chinese New Year, increasing demand is anticipated in March, which marks the end of the first quarter. Demand has increased as manufacturing resumes.

There is sufficient capacity to support the soft demand and rates continue to remain competitive in the market. Passenger travel restrictions in China have been largely scrapped and passenger demand should gradually increase in the coming months, leading to new passenger flights and capacity.

North America

United States export capacity is generally open and rates continue their downward trend. Expect additional capacity entering the market in the coming months to support increased travel demand.

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Ocean Freight Update

Ocean freight demand on most trade lanes continues to decline or remain flat, with shipping rates following the same pattern.

Throughput Growth: 2000–2025F
Line graph depicting throughput growth

Source: Linerlytica

Steamship lines continue to void sailings to balance the supply. They are also starting to slow steam or take longer routes via the Cape of Good Hope on the backhaul legs of major east-west services. This will impact transit-sensitive commodities. 

Congestion is almost totally gone and space options and rate levels have dropped in favor of shippers. However, the need for some flexibility remains as blank sailings and service adjustments continue to impact lead times.

Global schedule reliability
Line graphs showing average delay of late ocean vessels

Source: © Sea—Intelligence

Asia

The Asia-Europe trade utilization is stable to down. However, it is not substantial enough to maintain rates. Meanwhile, carriers are wary of the imminent introduction of new ultra large container ships (ULCS) into the Asia-Europe trade in the coming months.

Capacity utilization on the trans-Pacific trade lane remains below 85% on most services to all U.S. and Canada coasts. Rates continue to slowly decline to levels that are mostly unsustainable for steamship lines. The Asia-Latin America (LATAM) trade lane demand is stable to down.

Steamship lines continue to slow steam, mostly on the backhaul route, saving on fuel and absorbing capacity.

Europe

While the energy crisis did not impact the winter demand as drastically as forecasted, overcapacity continues to impact this region. Steamship lines have implemented service changes to optimize their coverage, differentiate services, and fill up ships with the right ports of call.  

North America

Imports remain soft year-over-year (Y/Y) due to inflation and normalizing demand from the largest importers, including retail, furniture, electronics, and home improvement. These industries represent over 50% of U.S. imports.

Still, the Y/Y comparisons will continue to show a dramatic drop since demand remained very high in the first half of 2022. For reference, based on arrival into the United States, February 2023 volumes were 0.3% lower than pre-pandemic levels in February 2019.

U.S. congestion has improved overall, with only a little bottleneck at some inland rail lines. As long as demand remains soft and port negotiations do not trigger major stoppages, congestion should stay at bay.

U.S. container imports from main Southeast Asia origins vs. China (2008–2022)

Line graph showing U.S. container imports from China

Source: Linerlytica

Oceania

The trans-Tasman market continues to be fluid with space and services opening gradually. The shuttle service out of Sydney and Brisbane has added tonnage to the lane, while the Focus Container Line to the trans-Tasman service introduction has increased options. 

U.S. to Oceania

The market continues to soften and rates will continue to slowly decline as carriers compete for market share. Space continues to be tight on the U.S. East Coast (USEC) but easing on the U.S. West Coast (USWC). 

The traditional peak season on the U.S.-Oceania trade lane is expected to wind down after the end of February, easing space issues. Port calls to New Zealand for exports from the USWC continue on a two-week basis, and transshipment service options are increasing.

Europe

The Europe export market remains stable, with space and equipment readily available for dry cargo. Rates are still gradually being reduced by all carriers as supply still outweighs demand.

Asia

Northeast Asia to Oceania continues to be in flux. Carriers are attempting to increase rates, but demand is not at a level to sustain increases. 

The post-Chinese New Year will likely be the next indicator as to whether carriers attempt more increases or resort to blank sailing programs.

Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia is in steady decline as demand weakens. Carriers are now looking at amending services, such as rationalizing port calls, to limit space and increase demand.

There are currently no reports of congestion in Singapore and Malaysia. Feedback from the lines report operations are normal and without major delays.

South Asia, Middle East, and Africa

Overall demand out of these regions remains soft.

Demand is fairly steady in India and Bangladesh, although much lower than last year. Pakistan demand is down severely.

Steamship lines are implementing service changes in this area of the world. Steamship lines are trying to optimize ship utilization and offer creative routes to attract cargo.

The main vessel operators on the India subcontinent to North America tried to push a general rate increase (GRI) for the beginning of March, yet the lower demand isn’t likely to allow for such an increase to hold.

Inland Drayage Update

North America
Average lead times across the country
Bar graph showing inland lead times for U.S. regions 

Inland service highlights

  • Capacity continues to open across U.S. markets and requires less lead time as shown in the image above.
  • Drayage carriers invested heavily over the past year in assets like chassis equipment, yard space, and trucks to support their operations. While rates have decreased and stabilized, rates likely won’t decrease as drastically in alignment with ocean freight.
Southeast

Port Everglades Terminal

  • Primarily known as one of the busiest cruise ports in the world, it is also Florida’s number one container port.
  • Beginning May 1, 2023, it will charge a Terminal Escort Fee impacting any driver that needs to access the terminal without having a TWIC card.
  • Since the majority of core carriers in the MIA/PEF markets already require drivers to have TWIC cards, there likely will be little to no disruption in day-to-day operations for standard dray. 
  • However, it is something to be aware of if you are working with and/or transload with several truckload providers.

Georgia

  • The Ports Authority is increasing chilled cargo capacity to stay ahead of anticipated growth in demand.
  • Consider routing through the Port of Savannah for refrigerated and temperature control cargo bound for southeast consignees.

Charleston

  • There are some growing pains in the Charleston market as the South Carolina Ports Authority (SCSPA) prepares to officially launch their SMART Pool chassis program.
  • With the South Atlantic Chassis Pool repositioning chassis into other markets, they require drivers to return SACP owned chassis to an off-site depot.
  • Expect to see an increase in driver wait time at the port, chassis split charges, and crosstown fees until the SMART Pool program goes live in May.
Northeast

NY/NJ

  • The ports in this area are abnormally slow for this season but continue to see week over week volume increases on inbound cargo.
  • Wait time at the gates is a rare occurrence, a significant change from previous months.
  • The photos below show the gates are very fluid, and truckers can move freely inside the ports.
  • The empty return rule is still in effect for the SSLs. This has caused containers to be held out of the port and unable to return for up to four days, which may lead to additional charges. 
Central/Ohio Valley

Chicago

  • UP Global IV is in the testing phase of changing their operations from a wheeled facility to grounded/stacks on freight between LAX to Chicago only.
  • Overall volume in Chicago has drastically reduced and capacity has been fluid.

Memphis/Nashville

  • Expect increased dwell time at the NS Rossville rail.

Indianapolis

  • Many of the chassis shortages in Indianapolis and other areas of the Midwest were in part a result of the IEPs reallocating chassis from rail hubs to port hubs where the demand was highest.
  • The CN Indianapolis rail has been more efficient by comparison as a grounded facility.

Minneapolis

  • Expect delays in this market with winter weather. 
  • Carriers are reporting terminal chassis need repair. This results in added time at the BN because of containers placed on chassis (wheeled operation) that require the driver to wait for repair before out-gating.

Kansas City

  • Currently, 40' chassis supplies are still in deficit and dwell is 35+ days, but driver capacity is open. 
  • Winter weather will affect rail lines and transit times.

Cleveland

  • CSX is moving containers to the offsite location and grounding them. This requires drivers to retrieve chassis from an offsite depot instead of making them available at the rail, which causes additional time and fees. 

Columbus

  • Chassis shortages remain a constraint. 
  • Norfolk Southern is not mounting from the train and requires a lift fee.
  • Expect additional charges when moving in this market.
West/Gulf

Port of Los Angeles/ Long Beach

  • Drivers are reporting excessive wait time as well as issues with empty returns across all steamship lines and terminals. 
  • It takes longer than usual to get in and out of all locations and in many cases, drivers exceed two hours. 
  • The port congestion fee in this market has been removed, however due to excessive wait times, many carriers charge for driver wait time per hour if their driver exceeds the set limit. 

Northern California

  • The Winter Storms continue in The Sierras, which is uncommon for these markets at this time of year. 
  • Recent weeks have seen a series of storms leaving up to 10 feet of new snow and I-80 closed for several days. 
  • Caltrans recommends motorists avoid travel during approaching winter weather events.
  • Expect reduced capacity when moving inland from northern California and delays as a result.

Houston

  • Port Congestion is declining, more carriers are expiring their port congestion fees. 
  • There are still some challenges and longer dwell times, but they are not as hindering as they were the first few months of 2023.
Asia

The domestic transportation market is gradually recovering, but the demand for cargo transportation is decreasing compared to the same period last year. Currently, fuel oil rates remain at a stable level, but the domestic freight market is experiencing a fierce price war due to unbalanced demand.

Customs clearance times between Shenzhen and China are speeding up for both imports and exports. Transit time in the Pingxiang port from China to Southeast Asia has extended to two to three days with the recovery of the cross-border transportation market.

Oceania

Australia port logistics and landside container transport services are currently operating at levels within capacity, and there are no reports of service issues at any of the major ports nationally.

Two major container terminal operators have now completed their annual review of terminal ancillary charges. The terminals have continued investments in equipment upgrades to ensure service levels meet expectations. 

The refrigerated logistics sector has seen one of Australia’s largest cold chain refrigeration companies, Scott’s Refrigerated Logistics, placed into receivership (a form of debt restructuring), having the potential to place additional pressure within the cold chain logistics market.

Customs Update

North America
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Trade lane updates

Use these insights to forecast how capacity changes and trends impact your business. Create customized, shareable reports by adding your preferred trade lanes. Check back each month for the latest updates in the lanes you care about. Updated ocean and air freight market insights will be available the third Thursday of each month.

Market status key:
Stable
Strained
Critical

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Trade lane FAQs

Q: What are C.H. Robinson's definitions of ‘stable,’ ‘strained,’ and ‘critical’?

Stable: Green – Relatively open capacity and low spot market rates
Strained: Yellow – Capacity is tight and mid-level spot market rates
Critical: Red – Backlog of capacity and high spot market rates

Q: What do the terms and acronyms commonly used in market updates mean?

  • Blank sailings – Blank sailings occur when a carrier has removed a vessel rotation from a given service string. This results in one week where there is no vessel sailing offered at the ports called on that particular service string.

  • CY – Container Yard. A location where containers are stored temporarily during transit. It can be a port terminal, rail terminal, or trucker’s yard.

  • Extra loader – An extra loader is a vessel that an ocean carrier has added to a service string to increase capacity in the short term. This vessel would not be part of the standard vessel rotation on that service string. It would be removed as soon as it is no longer required to meet excess demand.

  • FEU – Forty Foot Equivalent Unit. The forty foot represents a 40′ container.

  • GRI – General Rate Increase. This is one of the mechanisms ocean carriers can use to increase rates for ocean transport on a particular trade.

  • IPI – Interior Point Intermodal. Also known as rail ramps, these are inland points to/from which carriers can offer service on a through bill of lading.

  • PSS – Peak Season Surcharge. This surcharge is typically applied by ocean carriers during the peak shipping period on a given trade lane, where vessel space is either fully utilized or overbooked.

  • Roll/roll pools – A “roll“ happens when a container booked on a given sailing/vessel is transferred by the steamship line to the following vessel serving the requested lane. A “roll pool” is created when a steamship line plans for a large number of containers to roll from one vessel to another.

  • SSL – Steamship line or ocean carrier

  • Steamship line alliance – Alliances occur when a group of steamship lines share vessel space on their service strings and manage services in agreement with each other. There are currently three steamship line alliances on the main east-west trades: the Ocean Alliance, 2M Alliance, and The Alliance.

  • TEU – Twenty Foot Equivalent Unit. The twenty foot represents a 20′ container.

  • Transshipment – This service offered transports cargo in two legs on two different vessels. The first vessel brings the container from the port of origin to the port of transshipment. The second vessel brings the container from the port of transshipment to the final destination port.

  • VSA – Vessel Sharing Agreement. This is an agreement between steamship lines to share slots (space) on a service string or vessel.

Market insight videos

Watch these short videos to gain a better understanding of the market dynamics affecting global supply chains and the movement of goods around the globe.

Wheeled v. grounded U.S. inland terminals

Wheeled v. grounded U.S. inland terminals

Explore the difference between wheeled and grounded U.S. inland terminals with Jenna Kuehn, Director of Global Forwarding Inland at C.H. Robinson.

The chassis shortage

The chassis shortage

Learn about the dynamics behind equipment shortages in the U.S. inland market with Jenna Kuehn, Director of Global Forwarding Inland at C.H. Robinson.

Watch Oceania’s airfreight market forecast

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