On 22 September 2026, WWD’s Sourcing Journal reported Drewry’s World Container Index assessment showing the average cost of a 40-foot container from Shanghai to New York at $10,394, up 6.9% week on week and above $10,000 for the first time since July 2022. Shanghai–Los Angeles rose 4.9% to $7,712. Drewry’s eight-lane composite WCI increased 0.5% to $4,500 per 40 ft.
The piece frames a sharp bifurcation since 30 July 2026: New York-bound China cargo up 37.2% and Los Angeles-bound up 34.3%, while Shanghai–Genoa fell 28.7% to $4,016 and Shanghai–Rotterdam fell 22.3% to $3,626 after seven straight weekly declines on those Europe lanes. Drewry attributes Asia–Europe pressure to gradual Suez service returns and relatively weak demand, and expects Transpacific rates to firm further into the pre–Golden Week (1–7 October) rush.
Operational context in the same report: Drewry Container Capacity Insight listed nine Transpacific blank sailings this week versus eight last week; Shanghai vessel waiting time rose from 65 hours in the week of 31 August–6 September to 78 hours in the week of 7–13 September. Forwarder Freight Right Logistics warned that securing space does not guarantee on-time departure, and that a rollover combined with a delayed sailing can stretch total delay toward two weeks. Xeneta’s Peter Sand (cited in the piece) still expects one more early-October rate push before growth slows.