Container freight rates from Asia to Europe have fallen significantly since July, but shipping delays remain a challenge for importers in Europe, according to Sogese’s October Europe Container Market Update, published earlier this week.
Drewry’s Shanghai–Genoa spot rate fell from $6,463 per 40-foot container on 9 July to $3,702 on 1 October, a reduction of around 43%. More recent reliability data show that delays remain severe. Xeneta’s August scorecard found that only 6% of Far East–Europe arrivals were on time, with average delays of 8.2 days. Its September update reported that global schedule reliability fell to 27%, while just 4% of Far East–Europe arrivals were on time, with average delays of 9.9 days.
Why rates are falling
One factor putting pressure on rates is the return of shipping services to the Suez Canal, rather than routing vessels around Africa. The shorter journey allows ships to complete rotations more quickly, increasing the effective capacity available on Asia–Europe routes.
The recovery in Suez traffic is significant, but remains uneven. According to the Suez Canal Authority, container-ship net tonnage rose 54.2% year on year in January–August 2026, to 72.1 million net tonnes. The Authority also reported that 166 medium-sized and mega container ships transited the canal in the third quarter, compared with 16 in the same period of 2025. These figures indicate a substantial return of larger vessels, but do not establish a full return to pre-crisis service patterns or schedule reliability.
Congestion at major Chinese ports has also affected vessel schedules. ICIS reported on 3 September that approximately 135 vessels were waiting at Shanghai and 100 at Ningbo, up from 107 and 78, respectively, on 29 August. Conditions subsequently improved at some locations. Kuehne+Nagel reported that average vessel waiting times at Shanghai fell from 4.72 days in early September to 3.66 days in late September, while waits at Ningbo fell from 3.58 to 2.51 days. The figures point to some easing, although conditions remained uneven across ports.
For importers, this creates a gap between the time a vessel can save at sea and the time a shipment actually takes to arrive. A shorter route does not guarantee a faster delivery if delays at departure ports or elsewhere in the transport chain persist.
What Italian importers should watch next
For Italian importers, lower freight rates are only part of the picture. The return of services through the Suez Canal can shorten voyages to ports such as Genoa, La Spezia and Vado Ligure, but the actual benefit depends on vessel schedules, port operations, inland connections and container availability.
Eurostat data show that incoming container movements at Italian ports fell 5.9% year on year in the first quarter of 2026, to 1.36 million TEU. This measure includes both loaded and empty containers, so it does not establish that imports of goods fell by the same amount. The Q2 figure was not available in the dataset reviewed, leaving it unclear whether the decline continued.
"Importers should therefore compare the full cost and expected timing of a shipment, rather than choosing on the quoted ocean freight rate alone. Destination charges, inland transport, delivery schedules and the availability of the required container can all affect the final cost and the time goods reach their destination." added Monti.
“Lower freight rates give importers more room to negotiate shipping costs, but they do not necessarily make delivery planning easier. The return to the Suez Canal can shorten sailing times, yet delays at Asian ports can erode those savings. Businesses need to consider both the price they secure and the time their goods are likely to take to arrive when planning shipments,” Monti said.
Sogese’s October Europe Container Market Update examines freight-rate movements, the return of Suez routings, capacity changes and the implications for European and Italian cargo owners.
