A container truck pulls through the Pacific international container terminal at the Tianjin Port of north China's Tianjin Municipality, Jan. 11, 2021. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo)
TIANJIN, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- China Tianjin Shipping Index (TSI), an indicator of northern China's ocean freight rates for both international and domestic shipping markets, is expected to continue an uptrend in the near future, according to industry insiders.
The TSI still has the room for a further rise due to the continuous increase in freight rate of the international shipping routes and the backlog of delayed demands for outbound transport, said analysts.
The TSI closed at 1,074.73 points for December 2020, up 17.37 percent compared with the previous month, hitting the biggest single month increase in the year. The index has gone up by more than 10 percent in two consecutive months, according to the latest data released by the Tianjin International Trade and Shipping Service Center (TJITCS).
TSI is a comprehensive index calculated by the North International Container Freight Index (TCI), the North International Dry Bulk Freight Index (TBI) and the Coastal Container Freight Index (TDI). The statistical samples of TSI cover 27 international shipping routes from the ports of Tianjin, Qingdao and Caofeidian, and major Chinese domestic shipping routes linking with the Tianjin port.
According to the TJITCS, the continuous rise of the TCI contributed to the growth of the TSI for December last year.
Affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, the operation efficiency of the overseas ports declined, resulting in the delayed return of the containers to the domestic market and the shortage of containers. Under such circumstances, the TCI was up for more than 600 points to 1,783.80 points in December, representing a jump of 52.24 percent month-on-month. The TCI has been up for about 50 percent in two consecutive months.
For example, the freight rate of the European shipping routes has doubled in a single month. In addition to the long-standing problems such as the difficulty in empty container turnover, port congestion and the lack of wharf workers, the worsening pandemic in Europe have further shored up the freight rate.
"We waited for four days at Tianjin Port for one container,"said Li Na, vice manager of Tianjin Yongchengshijia International Forwarders Co. Ltd.
"At present, ocean routes generally increase by 1-3 times, and some routes even increase by dozens of times," She added. (Contributed by Wang Ning, Li Ting, edited by Hu Pingchao with Xinhua Silk Road, hupingchao@xinhua.org)
A single purchase
