The Shanghai Containerised Freight Index (SCFI) box spot rate from Asia to Northern Europe fell 24.9 per cent to $ 833 per TEU last week, according to reports.

The Asia to Mediterranean rate fell 21.4 per cent to $ 880 per TEU, while the rate to the US West Coast was down four per cent to $ 1,542 per FEU. The US East Coast rate decreased 2.1 per cent to $ 2,985 per FEU, the reports said.

The rates thus continued to be volatile, coming after the prior week's increase of 177 per cent, attributed to most big carriers implementing general rate increases from August 1.

Break-even rates for the Asia-Europe trade are estimated at between $ 800- $ 1,000 per TEU, the reports said.