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Posted by Amanda Bradfield
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14 May, 2026
WELL, my week started off with me accidentally using Chinese Five Spice instead of cayenne pepper. It's safe to say lunch took a very unexpected turn. Geez with my eyes, reading labels is becoming more of a “suggestion” these days.
Anyway, while I was confusing spices, the market’s been doing its own thing.
There’s a real sense at the moment that everyone came back from the holidays and hit go at once. Cargo volumes out of China have picked up again, space is tightening and there’s already talk of further increases flowing through from June.
East Coast demand is definitely feeling stronger than WA right now, but generally speaking, carriers seem pretty aligned in trying to keep capacity tighter than we’ve seen over the past few months. Add in ongoing Red Sea and Middle East issues, higher operating costs and slow hints of peak season pressure creeping in, and the market suddenly feels a lot firmer than it did a few weeks ago.
Global container spot rates also posted their sharpest weekly rise in months, jumping 12% as carriers pushed through emergency surcharges and tightened capacity amid ongoing geopolitical disruption. The biggest increases were seen on the China to US trades, with growing signs that peak season may be arriving earlier than expected this year.
Congestion has definitely become a bigger talking point over the past few weeks too. We’re seeing significant pressure across parts of India, the Middle East (understandably), West Africa and several ports in China. Europe isn’t escaping it either, with Rotterdam, Hamburg and Bremerhaven all experiencing ongoing delays and congestion challenges.
So, what else is happening out there?
💠 ONE orders $1.2bn worth of LNG fuelled container ships
💠 Brazil opens bidding for Santos mega terminal
💠 Hapag-Lloyd and Kuehne+Nagel launch green shipping deal
💠 DSV shifts to Tango AI platform
💠 PIL profit drops, but margins stay strong
💠 Patrick Terminals turns 107
💠 Pilbara Ports records increased volumes April 2026
💠 HMM Q1 profit falls
💠 CMA CGM invests $820m in Mombasa port
💠 Yang Ming reports modest decline for Q1
💠 DP World eyes second Bangladesh terminal
💠 John Travoltas plane arrives at Port Kembla
💠 Somali pirates demand $10m ransom for tanker
💠 MSC Announces major Oceania network revision
💠 Hapag Lloyd sees profit drop for Q1
I should have bought the wide angled lens for the picture that I am sharing today of the MSC Joanna. She's a whopping 337m in length and 46m wide. MSC have just announced some enhancements for their Oceania network - with changes made to the Eagle, Wallaby and the Noumea Express. They've added in the Southern Loop - a new service providing an enhanced gateway to and from New Zealand and Tasmania via Melbourne. Lovers of the Koala service, no changes noted on the advisory, notably nothing on the Kangaroo service either.
Have a great weekend everyone!
