Xeneta launches shipping index to ‘transform’ freight rate negotiations

Xeneta is launching a product that “aims to transform the way shippers, freight forwarders and carriers conduct freight rate negotiations”.

The Oslo-headquartered firm has created a new offering, Xeneta Shipping Index (XSI) that allows all parties to set rates at ‘transparent, efficient and fair prices that directly follow market fluctuations’.

“After several years working closely with cargo buyers and sellers, the one thing that is a clear pain point for many organisations is the inefficiency and opacity of contract negotiations,” explained Xeneta chief executive Patrik Berglund. 

“Freight rates are dynamic and prone to rapid change, so a shipper traditionally negotiating what they consider to be a fair rate for a long-term ocean freight contract can find that, three months later, they’re paying far in excess or below the actual market rates. This has the very real potential to make their products noncompetitive in the marketplace or risk supply chain disruptions. 

“Similarly for carriers, when the market is low or high, they risk shippers taking their business somewhere else or not living up to their contracts as these are not enforceable. The current situation is not ideal for buyer or seller and neither one has the upper hand.” 

XSI is a global ocean freight index with its foundations in Xeneta’s neutral database of over 65M contracted rates, covering over 160,000 port-to-port pairings, crowd-sourced from more than 700 leading international businesses.   

XSI rates to be tracked over major shipping routes covering 57 corridors representing 95% of global intercontinental volumes, such as Asia-Europe, Europe-Asia, transpacific and transatlantic, Mr Berglund explained.

Xeneta has several customers that have joined XSI. Luxury furniture manufacturer Ekornes is using XSI in partnership with global logistics leader DB Schenker.