Let’s focus this week on a typical European containerized Short Sea route. Rotterdam / Leixoes is a market dominated by the retail segment for FCL/FCL shipments in HCs from Asian origins.
Rotterdam is the primary hub to irrigate Western and Northern Europe, mostly to fulfill the European Retail industry requirements by short sea shipping in a voyage continuity with the trans oceanic transportation from China.
The « big three » Alliances offer this type of services via capitalistically controlled dedicated operators (like the M2 for MSL with Sealand, a company resulting from the combination on forces of Seago Line, Sealand et MCC Transport) or independant ones.
The average rate of $1,200 USD per HC to perform this Port Pair, with a weekly departure, and a 7 day transit Port to Port, is in direct comparison with the full truckload road equivalent, that costs an average of $2,900 Euros for a 3 ½ day, Door to door transit equivalent.
In everyday life, the price differential is far too extensive compared with the gain in time to promote full road for containers on this route. However, full road mode can be an option for some hot deliveries, for example: Already delayed containers from Asia. Also, we notice consistent stability in short sea rates, they are far less sensitive to market fluctuations than the main legs to which they are connected.
Photo credit: Image par Sergio Palau de Pixabay