Global airfreight rates were little changed last week according to the latest data from TAC Index, the leading price reporting agency for air freight. The overall Baltic Air Freight Index (BAI00) calculated by TAC was off a tad but by only -0.1 percent in the week to 19 August – maintaining the solid pattern of recent weeks and taking the year-on-year gain to +10.8 percent. Sources said the market is generally holding steady, despite it being the summer season when rates usually ease due to extra passenger bellyhold capacity.

While there was a lot of movement up and down on individual lanes, there was little change overall from the big hubs out of Asia. The index of outbound routes from Hong Kong (BAI30) gained a further +0.6 percent WoW, taking its gain YoY to +22.9 percent. Outbound Shanghai slipped -1.2 percent WoW, leaving its rise YoY at a robust +28.1 percent. There were further gains on rates from Seoul to Europe, newly added to the data the previous week. Rates fell back out a little out of India after the huge gains earlier this year, while rates from Vietnam were falling to Europe though rising again to the US.

Rates out of Europe eased back a little after recent gains amid some reports of marginal capacity being shifted to busier lanes out of Asia. The index of outbound routes from Frankfurt (BAI20) fell -2.4 percent WoW, with rates to North America as well as to China both slipping a little, leaving the decline YoY at -18.4 percent. Outbound London (BAI40) eased by -0.8 percent WoW, leaving the YoY fall on that index at -18.8 percent.

From the Americas, the index of outbound routes from Chicago (BAI50) gained a further +2.7 percent WoW, led again by higher rates to South East Asia, reducing the YoY decline to -14.7 percent. Overall rates from the US were rising to Europe but falling both to China and to South America, particularly on the lanes out of Miami following some strong recent gains.