Sea & Rail has price advantage over shipping to Europe

While the upward pressure on ocean freight rates on North American routes is weakening and remaining high, prices on European routes are rising again. According to several forwarder sources, spot freight rates for new cargoes from Japan to Europe for all-water shipping have reached $15,000-$16,000, while the Siberian Land Bridge (SLB) Sea & Rail, which uses the Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR), has risen but is still around $10,000 It seems. This is the first time in 40 years that rail transport rates have fallen below sea transport rates. However, although TSR's rail transport days are stable, the lead time to Europe is significantly delayed, as is shipping, due to congestion at the European side of the border and Far East ports. There is also a shortage of space for vessels and containers at sea.