MANILA — Asia’s busiest regional box lanes just got more expensive again. Drewry’s Intra-Asia Container Index (IACI) rose 6% this week to US$1,402 per 40ft container — a fourth straight all-time high — as typhoon disruption, pre–Golden Week cargo, and Middle East risk kept capacity tight, according to Drewry’s 17 September 2026 update.
Shippers moving goods out of China into Southeast Asia felt it first. Spot rates from Shanghai to Laem Chabang and Ho Chi Minh City each jumped 15%, to US$1,324 and US$1,161 per 40ft box. The Middle East corridor stayed extreme: Shanghai–Jebel Ali climbed 13% to US$8,509, while alternative routings via Jawaharlal Nehru Port also stayed elevated.
Congestion is part of the story. In Week 37, average vessel waiting time hit 78 hours in Shanghai (+13 hours week on week) and 77 hours in Ningbo (+11 hours). Fuel costs are climbing too: Singapore bunker prices are up about 60% year on year in 3Q26, and Ocean Network Express (ONE) lifted its emergency fuel surcharge on short-haul regional lanes from US$38 to US$60 per TEU from 16 September.
Drewry still expects freight rates to stabilise in the coming weeks as holiday demand normalises — but for now the composite keeps printing records. The IACI covers 18 intra-Asia routes, including Shanghai–Manila, so Philippine importers and exporters sit inside the same pricing net even when local headlines focus elsewhere.
Bottom line: A fourth record week means landed costs and booking risk stay sticky into Golden Week. Procurement teams should lock capacity early and watch Shanghai wait times — not just the headline US$1,402 print — before assuming the spike is done.
— WWC NEWSDESK
