Pre-Chinese New Year ‘rush’ ends in disappointment for container lines
- Asia-US spot rates have fallen by around 20%-30% since early January
- Asia-US west coast demand looks particularly weak; unlike in other mainline trades, US west coast liner capacity has not significantly increased
- National Retail Federation predicts lower US imports in 1H26 vs 1H25
The seasonal upswing before Chinese New Year turned out to be weaker than usual in the transpacific, and rates peaked six weeks before the holiday lull in all major east-west lanes
