On 1 October 2026, Drewry Supply Chain Advisors assessed the World Container Index (WCI) at US$4,434 per 40ft container, down 1% week on week, driven mainly by softer Asia–Europe rates as China’s National Day Golden Week holiday began.
Transpacific lane prints stayed elevated. Shanghai to New York rose 1% to US$10,428 per 40ft, while Shanghai to Los Angeles was unchanged at US$7,835. Drewry said carriers continue to manage capacity with blank sailings; its Container Capacity Insight showed 10 blanks announced for the following week, down from 13 in the current week, implying somewhat more scheduled capacity. With China factories shut during the holiday, Drewry expected Transpacific rates to ease in the next reading even as underlying demand had remained resilient into the holiday.
Asia–Europe extended a long soft streak. Shanghai–Genoa fell 3% to US$3,702 per 40ft and Shanghai–Rotterdam 2% to US$3,399, the twelfth consecutive weekly decline on the trade. Next-week blanks were five versus six this week. Drewry linked further downward pressure to rising Suez Canal vessel transits (Week 39 Suez transits were 68% higher than the same week a year earlier). Carriers are trying to reverse the slide with higher Freight All Kinds (FAK) asks in the second half of October after Golden Week; Drewry said successful implementation remains uncertain and expected rates to keep declining in the next holiday-week print.
Drewry’s near-term frame for procurement teams: the East–West market stays volatile from Golden Week cargo-flow pauses, Suez capacity recovery, Hormuz-related disruption, and the extended US–China trade truce, which could support a rebound in US-bound demand after factories reopen. Buyers should separate Transpacific and Asia–Europe playbooks rather than reading a single composite move as cheaper China–US ocean freight.