Freight decline

Any hopes of a revival in long-term ocean freight shipping rates were short-lived after the latest data from Oslo's Xeneta indicated the market is once again in decline. In September the Xeneta Shipping Index (XSI®), which tracks real-time rates developments on a month-to-month basis, revealed global long-term contracted rates had increased for the first time in 12 months. It now appears September was indeed a false dawn after data showed October reverted to a now familiar downward trend with the Global XSI® dropping by 2.6 per cent to 165.3 points.