Since the end of April 2026, the global shipping market, which had been quiet for half a year, suddenly "heated up". Multiple routes such as North America, South America, Europe, the Mediterranean, Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia have fully entered the mode of full cabins and price increases. Some shipping companies even have intensive price adjustments of "increasing prices every day", with the highest increase in a single container reaching 2,000 US dollars, making many freight forwarders exclaim "not knowing how to quote".

The pricing actions of leading shipping companies are particularly eye-catching. Maersk announced that from June 1, it will significantly increase the peak season surcharge for the China-West Africa route. For 20-foot containers, an extra 1,000 US dollars will be charged, and for 40-foot containers, an extra 2,000 US dollars will be charged. At the same time, from June 4, a unified peak season surcharge of 2,000 US dollars per container will be charged for routes from Far East Asia to Mexico, the west coast of South America, Central America and the Caribbean. From June 1, a peak season surcharge of up to 2,000 US dollars per container will also be levied on goods from the Asia-Pacific to the Middle East.

CMA CGM's price adjustment is also aggressive: on May 20, it announced that from June 1 to 14, the freight for the Asia-North Europe route will rise to 2,900 US dollars for small containers and 4,700 US dollars for large containers. Just one day later, it announced that from June 1, a peak season surcharge of 500 US dollars for small containers and 1,000 US dollars for large containers will be charged on this route, and the freight may rise again on June 15. In addition, Wan Hai Lines, a weathervane of the Asian route, also announced that from week 23, it will implement freight recovery for Asian routes, with an increase of 100/200 US dollars.

Industry analysis believes that this round of price increases is driven by multiple factors superimposed: geopolitical tensions in the Middle East lead to high fuel prices and increased costs of route detours, global trade demand rebounds leading to tight cabin capacity, and traditional peak season cabin control strategies of shipping companies. For foreign trade enterprises and freight forwarders, this "fierce" wave of price increases means that cost control and booking strategy adjustments are imminent.