Container transit tariffs across the Caspian Sea rose in September compared to August, driven by the situation surrounding the Strait of Hormuz.
Sea-news.az reports that according to pricing agency Argus Media, freight rates have continued to rise since the beginning of the year due to concerns over potential disruptions to maritime container shipments from China to Europe amid instability in the Middle East. Higher fuel prices have also contributed to the increased container shipping costs.
The analysis also notes that growing competition from alternative container routes out of China, including the Northern Sea Route, is restraining a more drastic surge in trans-Caspian container rates.
In September, the cost of shipping a 40-foot high-cube (40HC) container from Xi’an, China, to Alat/Absheron (Baku) rose to $6,750–$7,200. In August, this range stood at $6,700–$7,100.
Freight forwarders note that transporting containerized cargo through smaller operators can cost an additional 5–10 percent. Some carriers assessed the shipping cost of a 40HC container from Xi’an to Alat in September at $6,800–$7,300.
Carriers reported that the average transit time for container trains along the Xi’an–Altynkol–Aktau–Alat route remained unchanged month-on-month in September, ranging between 14 and 19 days.
In September, the transit shipping cost for a 40-foot container from Xi’an via Absheron/Alat to the Turkish ports of Ambarli and Mersin ranged between $7,200 and $8,000, compared to $7,200–$7,900 in August.
According to freight forwarders, the count of idle empty containers awaiting dispatch in Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Kazakhstan remained virtually unchanged compared to August, standing at 3,500–3,700 containers at the end of September.
