American purchases originating from the Far East will continue to face steep freight rates, as the market is sending mixed signals, according to the Xeneta, the ocean and air freight rate analytics platform.

The news comes on the heels of a declaration that the Strait of Hormuz is open, following a weekend announcement by Iran that it was closed again.

A US blockade of Iranian ports and vessels also remains in place until a final US-Iran peace deal is negotiated.

Here at home, an inland fuel surcharge of $80 per container by Bermuda International Shipping, which operates the Bermuda Islander cargo ship, was reported Thursday.

Inland fuel surcharges apply to trucking or rail freight costs to the port in the US and are temporary fees to offset volatile diesel prices.

Just prior to that BISL, Somers Isles Shipping and Bermuda Container Line all applied a $150 per TEU fuel surcharge in response to a 75 per cent increase in the cost of maritime fuel.

Meanwhile, even with Friday’s reopening announcement (and before the ensuing re-closure), Peter Sand, Xeneta’s chief analyst, reported that the underlying disruption at the Strait of Hormuz had not changed. There remains longer transit times, lower schedule reliability, and the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

“What has changed,” he said, “is that carriers have found workarounds on certain trades over the past seven weeks.” He added Far East to US West Coast rates were up more than 50 per cent since the end of February.

“That is not a market normalising from the crisis caused by the Middle East conflict,” he said.

Reflecting on developments in the most recent week, he said, the ocean market is sending very different signals depending where you look across global supply chains. Spot rates on European trades are easing — Far East to North Europe is down around 4 per cent over the past week, Mediterranean down nearly 5 per cent.

His published insight stated: “The divergence tells us that the disruption from the Middle East conflict is far from over. Carriers have adapted on the European lanes — new routing patterns are in place and capacity is flowing more predictably.

“That is bringing some relief to shippers on those corridors. But none of that applies to the trans-Pacific or Transatlantic, where rates remain elevated and show no sign of retreating.

“Any talk of normalisation needs to account for the fact that the majority of global fronthaul trades are still deep in crisis-level pricing.

“Seasonal dynamics are also playing a role in the European softening — the second quarter is historically the weakest for container demand, which gives rates room to come off their highs.

“But this should not be mistaken for a structural improvement. The underlying disruption — longer transit times, lower schedule reliability, and the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz — has not changed. What has changed is that carriers have found workarounds on certain trades.”