Welcome to United Kingdom Shipping Guide

Maersk switches pricing strategy - now quicker to pass on rate hikes

Maersk has changed the way it prices container freight, tracking market movements more closely than it did during the pandemic, according to Sea-Intelligence. Its analysis compares Maersk's average quarterly freight rates with the Container Trade Statistics (CTS) global average, using Q4 23 as a baseline. During the pandemic-era freight rate surge, Maersk was the clear outlier among carriers, Sea-Intelligence found, noting that the Danish shipping line was more cautious about passing rising market rates on to customers, apparently in the hope that doing so would result in a more gradual decline when the market turned. However, rates subsequently fell just as quickly for Maersk as they did for the wider market, said Sea-Intelligence, adding: "In other words, the data showed Maersk gave away some revenue upside when rates went up, but got nothing in return when rates went down." Sea-Intelligence estimated that, compared with a hypothetical scenario in which its pricing followed the market the strategy cost Maersk about $15.8bn in revenue. But the consultancy says Maersk's behaviour changed during what it called the "Red Sea cycle". With Q4 23 again the index baseline, Maersk's rates have closely tracked the CTS average as the market responded to the Red Sea disruption. "Figure A4 (below) shows the deviation in Maersk's rate from the CTS average. As can be seen, the deviation is so tiny, as to more likely constitute minor fluctuations with no discernible trend." Sea-Intelligence concluded: "What the data shows very clearly is that Maersk has changed its approach to pricing, compared to what it was doing during the pandemic." "They now very closely follow average market developments and hence avoid the loss in revenue opportunity when the rates suddenly surge."

Baltic Ground Services to handle cargo for My Freighter at three European airports

Baltic Ground Services (BGS) will provide fuel supply and ground handling services for My Freighter at Leoš Janáček Airport Ostrava in the Czech Republic, Tallinn Airport in Estonia and Riga International Airport in Latvia. While My Freighter has previously benefited from BGS's fuel supply services at Tallinn International Airport, this new deal has strengthened its operational capabilities across critical European air cargo routes. "We're pleased to expand our cooperation with Baltic Ground Services. BGS's award of these three locations is a testament to their operational excellence and customer-focused approach," said Abdulaziz Abdurakhmanov, founder and chief executive of Centrum Holding. "This expanded partnership is strategically important for My Freighter as we continue to scale operations and strengthen our presence in the Baltic and Central European markets. "The integration of fuel supply and ground handling services across Ostrava, Tallinn, and Riga will provide significant operational synergies and enhance our ability to serve our customers with greater efficiency and reliability." Vitalis Dudys, head of commerce at BGS Group, commented: "We are proud to continue supporting My Freighter in Tallinn while expanding our cooperation to Riga and Ostrava. "Our goal is to provide customers with consistent, high-quality fueling and ground handling services across our network, ensuring operational reliability wherever they fly. "We highly appreciate My Freighter's trust and look forward to further strengthening our partnership as their operations continue to grow in Europe."

China-Europe freighter capacity down nearly 30%

China-to-Europe freighter capacity is down nearly 30% from June due to a reduction in e-commerce imports into Europe, shows new data from Rotate. E-commerce imports into Europe in July dropped 24% in July drop compared to June. This followed the EU's introduction on 1 July of a €3 customs duty on low-value parcels imported from outside the EU. As a result, direct China-Europe freighter capacity immediately fell 10% compared to June levels. Now, China-to-Europe freighter capacity is consistently 28% below June levels and "no clear sign of recovery", said Rotate. Alongside this, according to the latest data from TAC Index, rates on the busiest lanes out of China to Europe have become firmer, even as volumes have been under pressure due to the EU customs duty. Overall utilisation down While has been some rerouting to the transpacific, overall global freighter utilisation is down as most lost capacity has not been redeployed elsewhere, said Rotate. In the case of Boeing 747-400Fs, which typically fly ad hoc, utilisation is down by 13.8%. Freighter capacity declines are concentrated in e-commerce gateways. In Europe, Madrid is down 78%, Budapest is down 58% and Liege is down 35%. Meanwhile, in China, freighter capacity at Ürümqi Tianshan International Airport is down 72%, and 28% at Hong Kong. Despite how the e-commerce market has changed to date, e-commerce shipping may recover within 12 months, suggests Rotate. This has been the case in the US, which ended de minimis treatment for shipments from China and Hong Kong on 2 May 2025 and globally on 29 August 2025, and Brazil, which ended de minimis on 1 August 2024.