Oslo-headquartered Xeneta has moved to fill the gap left by the Shanghai Shipping Exchange in supplying the container shipping industry with free, daily freight rate data.
Many in the liner community were disappointed when the Shanghai Shipping Exchange decided a few months ago to take its Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI), the spot freight rate benchmark for the industry, behind a paywall – the decision taken at a time of unprecedented market volatility for the sector.
Now, however, a new solution has emerged from Norway where freight rate platform Xeneta has decided to publish its short-term index free of charge.
The launch of the Xeneta Shipping Index (XSI) for the short-term market is a “gift” to the container shipping industry, the company said in a release yesterday, going on to claim that its crowd-sourced data was more broad than that offered by its Chinese counterpart.
“Xeneta data commands the same industry authority as that of the SCFI with even broader coverage, with a 99% correlation in short-term rates,” Xeneta claimed.
“The XSI for the long-term contract segment launched in 2018 and has established itself as the go-to solution for an industry looking to make sense of market movements,” commented Xeneta CEO Patrik Berglund. “However, in a constantly evolving rate landscape there’s no one-size-fits-all approach anymore. Shippers must stay proactive to obtain optimal value, so we’re seeing strategies with a greater mix of short and long-term agreements to adapt to on-going rate fluctuations. Increased demand means an increased demand for intelligence – from all stakeholders – and, with our unique data sets, we’re perfectly positioned to deliver.”
The XSI will be updated daily with a two-day lag, giving the public insights across 12 key lanes within the Asia – Europe, Pacific and Atlantic trade corridors. Xeneta’s main site also now features the new spot rates ticker.
“The demand for true intelligence in this most dynamic of segments is increasing exponentially. With rates and competition at such intense levels data insights are no longer a nice to have, they’re a must for businesses everywhere,” Berglund added.
Source: Splash
