AVI Market Intelligence
Vietnam Freight Market Intelligence: Ocean Rates, Capacity And Trade Flows
Weekly ocean freight benchmarks read through a Vietnam lens — what the global indices mean for cargo actually moving through Cat Lai, Hai Phong and Cai Mep.
Data as of 30 July 2026Drewry WCI composite
$4,255
▼ 3% week on week
Per 40ft container · 30 July 2026
Shanghai to Los Angeles
$5,739
▼ 2% week on week
Per 40ft container · 30 July 2026
Vietnam exports, July
$53.1bn
▲ 25% year on year
Monthly total · July 2026
Blank sailings, next week
8
from 7 the week before
East–west lanes · 30 July 2026
Freight Market
Rates Are Easing On Every Headhaul Lane
The Drewry World Container Index fell 3% to USD 4,255 per 40ft container in the week to 30 July 2026. The softening is broad rather than lane-specific: Asia–Europe is falling faster than the transpacific, and the eastbound backhaul legs are close to flat.
| Lane | Rate (USD/FEU) | Week on week |
|---|---|---|
| Shanghai → New York | 7,578 | unchanged |
| Shanghai → Los Angeles | 5,739 | ▼ 2% |
| Shanghai → Genoa | 5,630 | ▼ 6% |
| Shanghai → Rotterdam | 4,677 | ▼ 3% |
| WCI composite | 4,255 | ▼ 3% |
Source: World Container Index, Drewry Supply Chain Advisors, assessment dated 30 July 2026.
What this means for Vietnam shippers
Vietnam lanes are not priced in the WCI, but they track Shanghai closely with a lag of roughly one to two weeks. A falling market rewards patience on spot bookings and makes long fixed-rate contracts riskier. If you are negotiating Q4 rates now, the direction of travel argues for shorter validity periods and index-linked clauses rather than locking a flat number for six months.
Capacity & Container Market
Carriers Are Cutting Sailings To Defend The Price
Eight blank sailings are scheduled on the major east–west trades for the coming week, up from seven. That is the standard carrier response to softening demand: withdraw capacity to slow the rate decline rather than chase volume down.
What to watch
Blank sailings compress effective capacity without changing the published schedule. The practical effect is fewer usable departures, longer rollover queues at peak, and equipment landing unevenly across depots — even while headline rates fall.
Operational read
A falling rate environment with rising blank sailings is not the same as a loose market. Space can still be tight on specific strings in a specific week. Book earlier than the rate trend alone would suggest, and confirm the vessel is not on the blank list before committing to a cut-off.
Source: Drewry Supply Chain Advisors, week to 30 July 2026.
Vietnam Trade Flows
Volume Is Growing Far Faster Than Freight Rates Are Falling
Vietnam total import–export turnover reached an estimated USD 659 billion in the first seven months of 2026, up 28% year on year. Exports contributed USD 320 billion (up 21.9%) and imports USD 339 billion (up 34.5%). July alone recorded USD 53.1 billion of exports, up 25%, with imports up 41.4% and a monthly trade deficit of USD 3.59 billion.
| Indicator | Value | Change YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Total turnover, Jan–Jul 2026 | USD 659bn | ▲ 28% |
| Exports, Jan–Jul 2026 | USD 320bn | ▲ 21.9% |
| Imports, Jan–Jul 2026 | USD 339bn | ▲ 34.5% |
| Exports, July 2026 | USD 53.1bn | ▲ 25% |
| Trade balance, July 2026 | −USD 3.59bn | deficit |
Sources: National Statistics Office of Vietnam; Vietnam News Agency reporting on seven-month trade data, July 2026.
The number that matters
Imports growing at 34.5% against exports at 21.9% is the signal worth watching. That gap is raw materials and production inputs arriving ahead of export orders — a forward indicator of export volume in Q4, and the reason inbound space out of North Asia has stayed tight even as rates fell.
Ports & Infrastructure
Northern Gateways Are Absorbing The Growth
Cargo throughput across the Hai Phong port complex reached an estimated 96 million tonnes in the first half of 2026, up 11.4% year on year — confirming the northward shift in electronics and machinery manufacturing.
Hai Phong
Vietnam northern gateway, ranked 29th among the world busiest container ports with roughly 7.1 million TEU handled in 2024. Primary route for electronics, machinery and China cross-border volume.
Cat Lai, Ho Chi Minh City
The busiest container terminal in Vietnam and one of the largest in Southeast Asia, handling about 7.9 million TEU in 2022. Main southern gateway for textiles, footwear, furniture and agricultural exports.
Sources: Vietnam News Agency, Hai Phong six-month throughput 2026; published port authority figures for 2024 (Hai Phong) and 2022 (Cat Lai). Terminal TEU figures are annual and shown with their reference year.
Fuel & Surcharges
Bunker Cost Is The Floor Under Any Rate Decline
Marine fuel sets the level below which carriers will not sustainably price. When bunker costs hold steady while box rates fall, the gap comes out of carrier margin — which is precisely when blank sailings and general rate increase announcements start to appear. Watching the spread between Singapore VLSFO and headhaul box rates is a better early warning of a rate floor than watching box rates alone.
AVI publishes a verified Singapore VLSFO assessment in the weekly bulletin. It is omitted here pending a single-source feed rather than published from an unreconciled figure.
Need These Numbers Applied To Your Actual Lane?
Live rates for your port pair, container type and volume — not an index.
Check live rates →Related: Freight forwarding services in Vietnam · Customs clearance services · Freight Insights
Sources
- Drewry Supply Chain Advisors — World Container Index, weekly assessment
- National Statistics Office of Vietnam — monthly import and export data
- Vietnam News Agency — trade and port throughput reporting
- Published Vietnamese port authority throughput figures
AVI Logistics publishes this page as market commentary. Figures are drawn from the sources named above on the dates stated and are not independently audited. Rates for a specific shipment depend on carrier, equipment, volume and validity period.