Spot prices for containerized freight continued to rise this week, but the increase was only modest compared to previous weeks.

This is according to the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) rate index published by the Shanghai Shipping Exchange.

This is the 13th consecutive week that the index has risen, and this week the increase was 0.5% to 3733.8. This means that the SCFI is now 300.7% higher than at the same time last year.

However, it is still a long way from the peak reached in early January 2022 at 5109.60.

The SCFI measures the spot prices of containerized freight from Shanghai to a number of destinations around the world.

The recent period has been characterized by large increases in spot rates due to the unrest in the Red Sea, which has forced container shipping lines to make a long detour around the southern coast of Africa on routes between Asia and Europe.