The French container shipping giant has placed a moratorium on rate increases through 1 February 2022
CMA CGM group said it is "prioritising its long-term relationship with customers in the face of an unprecedented situation in the shipping industry".
"Since the beginning of 2021, container shipping spot freight rates have continued to rise due to port congestion and the major imbalance between demand and maritime container transport effective capacity. Although these market-driven rate increases are expected to continue in the coming months, the group has decided to put any further increases in spot freight rates on hold for all services operated under its brands (CMA CGM, CNC, Containerships, Mercosul, ANL, APL)," a CMA CGM statement said.
The decision applies to spot rates and is effective immediately until February 1 2022.
With the ongoing surge in freight rates, container ships worldwide are facing increased demand as economies emerge from lockdowns, although they are challenged by issues such as port congestion.
Disruptions in global shipping and rapid shifts in demand have led to the cost of shipping containers between China and the US west coast to grow more than 90% compared with 2019. This congestion is being felt acutely at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which together handle the largest share of containerised cargo moving through US ports.
In the US, the Biden administration has appointed John Porcari as a national Port Envoy to address port congestion issues as part of the US Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force.
The US is also looking to invest US$17Bn in port infrastructure as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal which has received the green light from the US Senate.
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