Many carriers are no longer loading the boxes with exports before returning to Asia. The practice is pushing demand for containers while simultaneously driving spot rates upward. Consumer demand is expected to remain elevated until the Lunar New Year holiday in February. Some 43.5% of containers at China’s Ningbo-Zhoushan port left on a different vessel than originally scheduled in October, up from 30.1% in September. The increase in the rollover rate reflects a shortage of boxes and disruptions to the supply chain.
