As the end-of-year holidays approach and in anticipation of the Chinese New Year which follows immediately after, sea freight prices continue to rise for the second month in a row. In Morocco, we seem to have anticipated this scenario in order to limit its impact on the end consumer.
Sea freight prices continue to rise at the end of the year. The global “Drewry” container index increased by 6% recently to reach $3,533 per 40-foot container from China to Europe or Morocco.
This increase was expected, since it had been taking shape since last month. It is mainly explained by the strong demand during this end-of-year period, marked by an increase in consumption and especially of products leaving Chinese factories to reach the European and American markets. This trend is expected to continue until around the beginning of February, with the start of the Chinese New Year. And obviously, each time this situation arises, we wonder what the repercussions will be on the consumer in Morocco.
“The impact of tariffs on prices depends on the delivery time. Usually, for products from China, it normally lasts around forty days. And for Europe, from 12 to around twenty days. But overall, for reasons of competitiveness, prices end up following the dynamics of maritime freight,” says Rachid Tahri, president of the Association of Freight Forwarders of Morocco (AFFM).
Impact on the consumer
Overall, the impact felt on prices should be fairly controlled. There may certainly be some movement in these prices, but at a fairly low level.
“Moroccan freight forwarders have acquired great know-how which helps the country to react in a robust manner: first the covid crisis, followed by that of the disturbances in the Red Sea. This means that our maritime system has already anticipated the congestion, which will be created by the transition from 2024 to 2025, by taking advantage of the lull in freight,” reassures maritime expert, Professor Najib Cherfaoui.
This increase, underway in December, marks the second month in a row after the bullish bubble deflated for several months. We remember that last February, for a container chartered in China and destined for the Mediterranean, the price increased from around 2,000 to 6,000 dollars, or even 7,000.
Stocks evacuated
Generally, at these times of the year, many manufacturers and importers anticipate congestion and high demand, which allows them to bring forward their supplies or delay them depending on their forecasts.
“The Kingdom was perfectly prepared, because shippers worked well on their schedule: they were able to take advantage of the August-October window to evacuate export stocks and renew import stocks. Thus, according to my calculations, the entry/exit of goods (excluding transshipment) increased in value, over this period, by 20%,” indicates Cherfaoui.
It should also be noted that Morocco is one of the rare countries to have been able to come out on top regarding the impact of the crisis in the Red Sea on maritime transport. Tanger Med has considerably improved its performance in terms of transshipment, while ports intended for import-export for the national market, such as that of Casablanca, have been extremely busy for this transshipment activity.
Rachid Tahri
President of the Association of Freight Forwarders of Morocco (AFFM)
“The impact of tariffs on prices depends on the delivery time. Usually, for products from China, it normally lasts around forty days. And for Europe, from 12 to around twenty days. But overall, for reasons of competitiveness, prices end up following the dynamics of maritime freight.
Najib Cherfaoui
Expert maritime
“Moroccan freight forwarders have acquired great know-how which helps the country to react in a robust manner with, first, the covid crisis, followed by that of the disturbances in the Red Sea. This means that our maritime system has already anticipated the congestion, which will be created by the transition from 2024 to 2025, by taking advantage of the lull in freight.
Abdellah Benahmed / ECO Inspirations
