Media: Cost of shipping goods from China to Russia rises

The cost of shipping a container from China has reached a three-and-a-half-year high, approaching levels last seen in 2021-2022, Logist reports, citing Delo.Analytics index.

The index showed the cost of shipping a 40-foot container from Shanghai to Moscow rose 6% in July and 17% compared with May, reaching $9,531, Caliber.Az reports.

This is the highest level since early 2023, while record levels in late 2021 and early 2022 stood at $10,200-$10,500 per container, experts from Logist noted.

The index reflects the combined cost of shipping along four key routes: through Far Eastern ports, Novorossiysk, St. Petersburg and rail crossings.

Shipping costs increased across all routes, with the sharpest rises recorded for shipments through Vladivostok and Nakhodka, as well as Novorossiysk.

Rates in the Russian Far East have been rising since the beginning of the year, increasing 21% since May to $8,500 per container. On the Black Sea route, prices began surging in July amid intensified Ukrainian drone attacks. By the end of the month, shipping along the route cost an average of 23% more than in May, reaching $10,700 per 40-foot container.

Data from the Centre for Price Indices also point to a sharp increase in logistics costs. In mid-August, spot rates for shipping containers from China exceeded $9,000 on almost all routes. Compared with August last year, when logistics costs were at their lowest amid importers' payment difficulties and weaker consumer activity, the index has risen 77%.

According to the Centre for Price Indices, the sharpest increase on the Black Sea route came in early August, when drones attacked several commercial vessels and a number of carriers, including Fesco, stopped operating on the route.

The remaining carriers began charging a risk surcharge of around $1,000 per container on average, pushing the average cost of shipping a container from Asia to as high as $11,000. By mid-August, prices had stabilised at around $10,200.

The rise is linked to most importers and many exporters abandoning the route, according to the head of a major transport and logistics company.

“Traffic on the route continues, but it is an order of magnitude lower than it was as recently as July, as the high risk and high shipping costs are forcing companies to look for alternative routes, which is driving up prices on those ‘alternative’ routes,” he explained.

There are already many factors pushing prices higher this summer, the logistics executive added, including overall inflation, a significant increase in imports from China, a shortage of space on vessels and containers in the Far East, and the fuel crisis.

According to the Centre for Price Indices, imports from China reached a record $12.3 billion in July, up 35% from a year earlier.

In addition, many companies have begun insuring cargo against drone attacks on all routes, another logistics executive said.

“The logic is that the cargo will travel through Russia, and anything can happen along the way,” he explained.

According to him, while the basic insurance rate was 0.11% of the cargo's value, adding terrorism and sabotage coverage would raise the rate to 0.25%-0.3% for shipments traveling from the Far East or through southern and central Russia.

Market participants expect prices to continue rising in the autumn, driven by the peak season, military risks and an 8.5% increase in Russian Railways tariffs scheduled for October 1.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov