Global container volumes strong in January 2025

Global container volumes remained strong in January 2025, reaching 15.4 million TEUs, a 5.8% year-over-year (Y/Y) increase, according to Container Trade Statistics (CTS).

Data from CTS shows that global TEU*Miles – adjusted for nautical distance – grew by 8.1% Y/Y in January, indicating higher vessel capacity utilization. Additionally, head-haul container trades showed a robust 12.9% Y/Y growth in January 2025.

While TEU*Miles’ growth exceeded 20% in 2024, this was primarily due to the rerouting of container services from the Suez Canal to the African route because of the Red Sea crisis, not an underlying surge in container demand. January 2025 marks the first month with a direct Y/Y comparison of the Africa detour, making the 8.1% Y/Y growth a more accurate reflection of real, distance-adjusted container demand. However, it’s important to note that the timing of the Chinese New Year (CNY) could still impact January’s figures, so they should be interpreted with caution.

Another indicator of market strength is utilization. Adjusting for CNY timing, which typically leads to a drop in demand, utilization provides a clearer picture. On the Asia- Europe route, utilization fell in January 2025, which is unusual, as this typically happens after CNY. This may explain the early decline in spot rates for this trade lane. On the Asia- North America route, utilization strengthened in January, and spot rates remained stable for a longer period, suggesting that the decline in Asia- Europe spot rates may be linked to lower utilization on that route.

“In Europe-North America, however, there was a sharp drop in utilisation in January, but curiously, without a major drop in spot rates – at least not yet,” stated Alan Murphy, CEO of Sea-Intelligence.

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