Hanjin Boosts Asia-Europe Rates

 Hanjin Shipping joined other carriers trying to boost pricing on the deeply troubled Asia-Europe lanes on Wednesday, announcing it will raise rates at the end of this year.

The South Korean shipping line said the increases effective Dec. 23 were “inevitable” because “as shown in our latest business performance, current rates cannot cover basic operating costs let alone hiking fuel prices.”

The announcement follows moves by several other carriers — Maersk Line, Hapag-Lloyd and UASC — to raise prices on westbound Asia-Europe lanes that have seen rates in freefall in recent weeks. The latest SCFI Containerized Freight Index showed pricing on Asia-Europe shipments off 40 percent since the start of September.

Hanjin reported a third-quarter loss of $1.5 million on its container operations on Nov. 4 as sliding freight rates and higher fuel costs offset a 12.3 percent increase in container volume year-over-year.

The rate increases on containers shipped from Asia to North Europe and West Africa are $200 per 20-foot equivalent unit and $400 per 450-foot equivalent unit. The rate increases on containers shipped from Asia to the Mediterranean are $175 per TU and $350 per TEU.

-- Contact Peter T. Leach at pleach@joc.com. Follow him on Twitter @petertleach.