Skip to content
Seven Colorsourcing.center by Seven Color Trading Co Ltd · China

China desk · sourcing news

Brief

China-US ocean: rates still firm, but schedule reliability is the bigger risk

Freight Right’s TFX update dated 16 Sep 2026 (week of 14 Sep) says China-US ocean rates rose roughly USD 500-600 per container week on week. West Coast quotes are about USD 7,000-8,000 per container; East Coast remains above USD 10,000 and can reach about USD 11,000. Freight Right’s lowest-rate indicators still show some spots near USD 6,400 to the West Coast and USD 8,500 to the East Coast. The desk stresses that booking rollovers plus delayed ETDs can add close to two weeks, so reliability now

Freight Right’s TFX update dated 16 Sep 2026 (covering the week of 14 Sep) reports that China-US ocean rates kept climbing, with carriers holding firm control of available space. Rates rose by roughly USD 500-600 per container week on week through the first half of September.

West Coast pricing is described at about USD 7,000-8,000 per container, with blank sailings and rollovers making confirmed capacity harder to secure than earlier in the month. East Coast pricing remains higher, generally above USD 10,000 and reaching about USD 11,000 in some cases. Freight Right’s lowest-rate indicators still find some spots near USD 6,400 (West Coast) and USD 8,500 (East Coast).

The operational warning is sharper than the rate print: a booking can secure space and still see departure slip several days; combined with a rollover, total delay can approach two weeks. Freight Right recommends lifting booking lead time from about one week to two to three weeks, and expects the next two weeks to be the last major ocean push before China’s early-October holiday.

Source: Freight Right

Topics

  • logistics
  • freight-rates
  • transpacific
  • golden-week

All news

Xinhua: 140th Canton Fair opens in Guangzhou; Premier Li Qiang keynotes opening up; 30,000+ exhibitors, ~340,000 overseas buyers

Xinhua (14 Oct 2026, Guangzhou) reports that Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivered a keynote at the opening ceremony of the 140th China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair). He said China will keep expanding high-standard opening up and will import more high-quality, high-value-added products. This edition gathers more than 30,000 exhibiting companies and about 340,000 overseas buyers. Phase 1 runs 15-19 Oct in Guangzhou, with later phases through 4 Nov.

GACC via NBD: China September exports $447.18bn (+36.3% YoY); imports $313.65bn (+31%); Jan-Sep exports +21.3%

National Business Daily (14 Oct 2026), citing General Administration of Customs (GACC) data, reports that in US-dollar terms China's September 2026 exports were USD 447.18 billion, up 36.3% year on year, and imports were USD 313.65 billion, up 31%. For January to September, exports totaled USD 3,370.7 billion (+21.3%) and imports USD 2,432.58 billion (+27.5%). The same day's SCIO/GACC briefing (China News) put September trade in yuan at RMB 5.16 trillion (+27.5%), the first month above RMB 5 tri

China News: Ningbo-Zhoushan rail-sea intermodal tops 1.6m TEU in Q1-Q3 (+8.5%); September sets monthly record

China News Service (14 Oct 2026, Ningbo), citing Zhejiang Seaport Group, reports that Ningbo-Zhoushan Port handled more than 1.6 million TEU of rail-sea intermodal cargo in the first three quarters of 2026, up 8.5% year on year. September alone exceeded 200,000 TEU, a monthly record. New products include a Middle East rail-sea train from Yiwu, domestic water-rail 'one-document' links, a Yiwu-Qinzhou domestic train, and an Aksu export train with Xinjiang 'one box to the end' export mode.

People's Daily/Jiefang Daily: Shanghai Port hits monthly record 5.135m TEU in September (+6.2%)

People's Daily Shanghai (13 Oct 2026), citing Jiefang Daily, reports Shanghai Port handled 5.135 million TEU in September 2026, up 6.2% year on year and a new monthly record. Mingdong Terminal set its own round-the-clock record at 30,056 TEU in a day. After typhoons Bavi, Dolphin and Sadr, SIPG said it cleared backlog ships with customs, maritime and border support, tightened export gate-in and transshipment flows, and cut non-working waits. Over National Day Golden Week the port handled 1.15 mi

Dated desk notes, not a news feed Updates.

Need the factory-floor read on a story?

The China desk can map a cited development to your SKU, QC, and lane, from Xiamen, with Dubai 3PL when the stock needs a hub.

Get a quote in 24hWhatsAppI have a new product idea
  • D&B registered
  • Xiamen + Dubai hubs
  • Fast WhatsApp response
  • Factory network
WhatsAppChina-US ocean: rates still firm, but schedule reliability i