China Logistics Daily: US Imports Hit Record, Rates Fall
The bottom line
US container imports hit a record 2,546,261 TEU in September, with China-origin volume up 4.5% on August to 924,454 TEU, so demand on your lane is strong even as spot rates to Europe fall by a third or more since July. Tender season favours you right now: carriers are cutting long-term deals and even forwarders are getting better rates. If you ship to FBA, Amazon’s two new China to US air options give you a 7 to 15 day replenishment window with no inbound placement fee.
US imports set a September record as China volume climbs 4.5%
The short version
US container imports hit a record 2,546,261 TEU in September 2026, with China-origin volume up 4.5% month on month to 924,454 TEU.
What happened
Descartes reported US container imports of 2,546,261 TEU in September 2026, the highest September on record. That is 10.3% above September 2025 and 24.8% above September 2019, though 2.2% below August. Cumulative volumes for the first nine months of 2026 are now 0.8% ahead of 2025, the first time this year the running total has posted a gain.
Imports from China totalled 924,454 TEU, up 4.5% on August and 21.2% on September 2025. China’s share of total US imports rose from 34.0% to 36.3%. Plastics led at 135,097 TEU, then furniture and bedding at 123,574 TEU, then toys and sporting goods at 92,842 TEU. West Coast ports gained share while port transit delays increased at eight of the top ten ports.
Source: Hellenic Shipping News
Why it matters to you
If you sell into the US, your competitors are shipping more, not less. A 21.2% year-on-year jump in China-origin volume means capacity competition on the transpacific stays real through Q4, even with rates softening. The growth is concentrated in exactly the categories most ecommerce sellers occupy: plastics, furniture, toys and sporting goods.
The detail that should worry you is the port transit delays increasing at eight of the top ten ports while West Coast gateways gain share. If you route through Los Angeles or Long Beach for speed, build buffer into your inbound promises. A record-volume September plus rising dwell times means your Q4 replenishment is more exposed to landside delay than to ocean transit.
The hot take
Everyone told you tariffs would kill China-US volume this year. The data says the opposite. I would stop waiting for a demand collapse to bail out your freight budget and plan for a busy, congested Q4 on the West Coast instead.
What to do about it
- Add at least five days of buffer to any US inbound with a hard Q4 selling date, given rising port delays.
- Check whether your forwarder is routing you to gaining-share West Coast ports and ask what their dwell-time plan is.
Far East to Europe spot rates down a third since July peak
The short version
Xeneta reports Far East to Mediterranean spot rates down 43% and North Europe down 34% since 1 July, with transpacific rates now dipping too.
What happened
Xeneta chief analyst Peter Sand reports spot rates on Far East to Europe trades have fallen heavily since the post-Hormuz crisis peak in July. The Mediterranean is down 43% since 1 July and North Europe down 34%. Sand says the pace of decline has eased but the trend is still downward and the floor has not been reached.
Market average spot rates on 7 October 2026 stood at $8,336 per FEU Far East to US West Coast, $11,512 to the US East Coast, $3,645 to North Europe and $4,007 to the Mediterranean. The Mediterranean to North Europe spread has narrowed to $400, below where it stood a year ago. On 7 October, Far East to US West Coast rates dipped $2, the first fall since mid-September.
Source: Hellenic Shipping News
Why it matters to you
Tender season is in full force and falling short-term rates strengthen your hand in long-term contract talks, because contracts benchmark against the spot market. If you ship China to Europe, this is the best negotiating window you have had all year. Xeneta notes even freight forwarders are now getting better deals from carriers, which means the savings are reachable for mid-volume sellers, not just big boxes.
If you ship to the US, do not celebrate yet. A $2 dip on an $8,336 FEU rate is noise, and record import volumes support transpacific pricing. Europe-bound sellers should lock in now; US-bound sellers should treat any rate softness as a bonus, not a plan.
The hot take
My read: Europe rates have further to fall and Sand is telling you so in plain language. I would sign shorter contract terms now, three to six months, and renegotiate in the new year rather than locking twelve months at today’s levels.
What to do about it
- Open or reopen contract talks for your China to Europe lanes this week while spot benchmarks are falling.
- Ask your forwarder for a fresh spot quote on every Europe booking rather than rolling last month’s rate.
- Hold off on long transpacific commitments until the downward hint confirms into a trend.
Amazon adds two China to US air freight services for sellers
The short version
Amazon launched Air SMP, 7 to 10 days from Shanghai or Hong Kong, and Economy Air, 11 to 15 days to Los Angeles, both under Amazon Global Logistics.
What happened
Amazon announced two new China to US air freight options inside Amazon Global Logistics. Air SMP lets sellers split inventory at origin and ship direct to fulfilment centres in five US regions via daily flights from Shanghai and Hong Kong, arriving an estimated 7 to 10 days after pickup. There is no inbound placement fee for FBA users and no surcharge on apparel, electronics or lithium battery products.
Economy Air is the cheaper option, priced below the standard Amazon Global Logistics air service, with an estimated transit of 11 to 15 days from Shanghai or Shenzhen to Los Angeles. Amazon did not disclose prices. The company said both services suit peak season preparation, stockout recovery and time-sensitive launches where ocean is too slow.
Source: Supply Chain Dive
Why it matters to you
If you sell on FBA, this changes your stockout maths. A 7 to 10 day door-to-door option with no inbound placement fee removes two of the usual objections to air: cost stacking and placement penalties. The no-surcharge line on lithium battery and electronics products matters if you sell in those categories, where air quotes usually carry painful adders.
Economy Air at 11 to 15 days sits in the gap between standard air and fast ocean, and it is priced below standard air. For Q4 recovery stock that missed the ocean window, that is a real middle option. Prices are undisclosed, so you need to quote it against your forwarder’s air rate before assuming it wins.
The hot take
Amazon keeps quietly building a freight forwarder inside its marketplace. I would test Air SMP on one replenishment cycle now, before peak capacity tightens, because the sellers who learn the service early will get the best of it in November.
What to do about it
- Request quotes for both Air SMP and Economy Air and compare them against your current air and fast-ocean options.
- Test Air SMP with one split-shipment replenishment now to learn the service before peak.
- Recalculate your stockout recovery plan using a 7 to 10 day air option instead of ocean.
Germany blocks COSCO purchase of Hamburg freight firm Zippel
The short version
Germany’s parliament voted on 7 October 2026 to block COSCO’s planned 80% stake in freight forwarder Konrad Zippel over supply chain security concerns.
What happened
Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs announced on 7 October 2026 that the Bundestag had voted to reject the sale of an 80% stake in Konrad Zippel to a COSCO affiliate. Zippel, founded in 1876, runs more than 200 trucks and intermodal rail services moving cargo between the Port of Hamburg and inland Germany, and provides logistical support to NATO and the German Armed Forces.
The Federal Cartel Office had cleared the deal on competition grounds, but the Ministry for Economic Affairs, the Foreign Office and the Ministry of Defence raised economic and security concerns. The ministry said the acquisition would have deepened dependencies and jeopardised supply chain resilience in Germany and the EU. Germany reviews more than 300 foreign investment deals a year and has now rejected eight.
Source: The Maritime Executive
Why it matters to you
If you route through Hamburg, your day-to-day freight does not change tomorrow. Zippel keeps its current ownership and keeps hauling. The signal that matters is regulatory: European governments are now willing to block Chinese state capital in logistics assets, four years after COSCO’s Hamburg terminal investment caused a political fight.
For you, the practical read is about counterparties. If your supply chain leans on COSCO-linked logistics assets in Europe, expect more scrutiny, slower approvals and occasional political shocks. Diversifying your European hauliers and forwarders is now a risk decision, not a preference.
The hot take
Europe is drawing a line around Chinese state ownership of its logistics spine, and this will not be the last block. If you assumed Chinese capital would keep buying European logistics assets, price in the opposite.
What to do about it
- Map which of your European logistics providers have Chinese state ownership exposure.
- Qualify at least one alternative haulier or forwarder for your Hamburg and inland Germany moves.
Shots fired at Chinese-operated boxship in southern Red Sea
The short version
A small craft fired shots at the Singapore-flagged, Chinese-operated CUL Klang in the southern Red Sea on 7 October; the crew was uninjured and the ship continued north.
What happened
MSCIO, the EU-sponsored Maritime Security Centre Indian Ocean, received reports on 7 October 2026 of a small boat harassing a passing containership in the southern Red Sea, north of the Bab el-Mandeb. Shots were fired. The craft moved away and the ship continued northbound with the crew uninjured.
Security consultants identified the vessel as the Singapore-flagged CUL Klang, 2,433 TEU, delivered in 2024 and operated by Chinese carrier CUL Lines. Its AIS displayed the message “China owned&CHN crew.” The incident comes amid intensified fighting along the Yemeni coast, with Saudi-backed and government forces clashing with the Houthis around Mocha and the Bab el-Mandeb, and both sides claiming control of strategic coastline.
Source: The Maritime Executive
Why it matters to you
If your Europe-bound cargo is routed via the Cape of Good Hope, this incident validates that choice. If you or your forwarder have been tempted back to Suez routings by falling rates, a Chinese-operated ship taking fire is your answer. Chinese-flag status is no longer assumed protection, whatever the Houthis have said about targeting.
The Xeneta data shows Cape rerouting is already baked into Mediterranean rate spreads. The risk now is escalation: fighting around the Bab el-Mandeb plus missile strikes into Saudi Arabia means war-risk premiums and schedule volatility stay with you through Q4. Do not book Suez transit for anything with a Christmas delivery date.
The hot take
The market briefly flirted with the idea that Chinese tonnage had a free pass through the Red Sea. That idea took fire this week. Keep your Europe cargo on the Cape and stop asking your forwarder when Suez reopens.
What to do about it
- Confirm every Europe-bound booking for Q4 is routed via the Cape of Good Hope, not Suez.
- Ask your forwarder what war-risk surcharge applies to any Red Sea transit quote you receive.
Content hooks
Angles from today’s stories, ready to turn into a post, a video or a note to your list. Take them. That is what they are for.
- 01 US imports just set a September record, so stop planning your freight budget around a demand collapse.
- 02 China-origin TEU into the US rose 21.2% year on year. The tariff story and the volume story do not match.
- 03 Far East to Mediterranean spot rates are down 43% since July. If you are not renegotiating your Europe contracts this month, you are donating margin.
- 04 A $2 dip on an $8,336 transpacific FEU rate is not a trend. Do not let your forwarder sell it as one.
- 05 Amazon is becoming a freight forwarder. Its new 7 to 10 day China to US air service has no inbound placement fee, and that should worry your current forwarder.
- 06 Germany just blocked a Chinese state company from buying a 150-year-old Hamburg haulier. Europe’s logistics assets are no longer freely for sale.
- 07 A ship displaying “China owned&CHN crew” took fire in the Red Sea. The safe-passage assumption is dead.
- 08 Port transit delays rose at eight of the top ten US ports in a record month. Your Q4 risk is landside, not ocean.
- 09 Tender season plus falling spot rates is the best card a Europe-bound shipper has been dealt all year. Play it.
Questions people are asking
- Are ocean freight rates from China to Europe falling?
- Yes. Xeneta reports spot rates from the Far East to the Mediterranean down 43% and to North Europe down 34% since 1 July 2026. On 7 October, average rates were $3,645 per FEU to North Europe and $4,007 to the Mediterranean. The analyst view is that the downward trend continues, so you have room to negotiate both spot bookings and long-term contracts this tender season.
- How long does Amazon’s new air freight from China to the US take?
- Amazon’s Air SMP service takes an estimated 7 to 10 days from pickup, flying daily from Shanghai and Hong Kong direct to fulfilment centres in five US regions. Its Economy Air service takes 11 to 15 days from Shanghai or Shenzhen to Los Angeles at rates below Amazon’s standard air service. Amazon has not published prices, so request a quote inside Amazon Global Logistics.
- Is the Red Sea safe for container shipping right now?
- No. On 7 October 2026 a small craft fired shots at the Chinese-operated containership CUL Klang in the southern Red Sea. The crew was uninjured, but fighting between Yemeni factions around the Bab el-Mandeb is intensifying. Most carriers continue routing via the Cape of Good Hope, adding roughly ten to fourteen days to Asia-Europe transit. Avoid Suez routings for time-critical Q4 cargo.
- Are US imports from China still growing despite tariffs?
- Yes. Descartes data shows US imports from China reached 924,454 TEU in September 2026, up 4.5% on August and 21.2% on September 2025. China’s share of total US container imports rose to 36.3%. Total US imports hit a record September volume of 2,546,261 TEU. Demand on the transpacific lane remains strong heading into Q4.
- Why did Germany block the COSCO deal?
- Germany’s Bundestag voted on 7 October 2026 to block COSCO’s purchase of an 80% stake in Konrad Zippel, a Hamburg freight and intermodal firm with over 200 trucks. The economic ministry cited security concerns and risks to German and EU supply chain resilience, noting Zippel supports NATO and the German Armed Forces. Germany reviews over 300 foreign deals a year and has rejected eight.
The bottom line
The bottom line
US container imports hit a record 2,546,261 TEU in September, with China-origin volume up 4.5% on August to 924,454 TEU, so demand on your lane is strong even as spot rates to Europe fall by a third or more since July. Tender season favours you right now: carriers are cutting long-term deals and even forwarders are getting better rates. If you ship to FBA, Amazon’s two new China to US air options give you a 7 to 15 day replenishment window with no inbound placement fee.