Typhoon Ragasa Snarls Far East Ports as Asia-Europe Rates Continue to Fall

Typhoon Ragasa causes severe disruptions at Far East ports just before Golden Week, while Asia-Europe container rates continue to decline and new U.S.-China tariff developments add to uncertainty.

Typhoon Ragasa (also called Nando) on 23 Sep 2025

Typhoon Ragasa on Sep. 23, 2025 (Source: NASA)

Typhoon Ragasa caused significant damage in parts of Taiwan and the Philippines as it crossed the South China Sea earlier this week, before making landfall in China's Guangdong province on Wednesday (Sept. 24). The storm has since weakened to a tropical depression and is tracking along the coast towards Vietnam.

The typhoon forced the closure of all container ports and airports in Hong Kong and southern China starting Monday, with some reopening on Thursday. Hapag-Lloyd expects the damage and backlogs to cause delays of several days at the region's main ports, with vessels at Yantian potentially being held up for as long as a week.

These delays could be particularly disruptive for shippers still trying to move orders ahead of the Golden Week holiday in China, which begins on October 1.

Ocean Freight Market: Rates Diverge, Pressure Mounts

• Transpacific: Container rates to the U.S. East Coast edged up 2% to $3,426/FEU last week, but rates to the West Coast fell 5% to $2,185/FEU. Daily rates to the West Coast have even slipped below $1,900/FEU this week.

• Asia-Europe: Spot rates on the Asia-Europe and Mediterranean trades continued their nearly uninterrupted slide since mid-July. Last week, rates on both trades fell by 15%, down to $2,196/FEU to Europe and $2,421/FEU to the Mediterranean. This drop has pushed rates on both lanes to their lowest levels since December 2023. Some suggest a price war could be contributing to this decline.

However, the typhoon-induced congestion at Far East ports – combined with an increase in blank sailings in October – could help carriers stabilize rates as demand is likely to continue to fall in Q4.

Trade War Developments

In trade war-related developments, President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping held a phone call earlier this week. Although the conversation focused on resolving the TikTok issue, the White House said the two sides also made progress on trade matters.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is set to begin applying port call fees to Chinese carriers and China-built vessels on October 14. Carrier COSCO has announced it does not anticipate any disruptions and will not be applying surcharges due to these new fees. Other carriers like Maersk have also said they do not plan to apply fees related to the new rule.

Air Cargo Market: Short-Term Disruptions, Long-Term Shifts

Typhoon Ragasa caused thousands of flight cancellations at airports in the affected region, including Hong Kong, though some flights were expected to resume starting today. The disruption in ocean logistics could cause a brief modal shift to air.

More broadly, the industry continues to feel the effects of shifts in supply and demand due to the trade war. For example, as China-U.S. volumes have fallen, Vietnam-U.S. capacity has doubled. Asia-Europe routes have also seen volume growth as some manufacturers explore a "US+1" strategy.

Data from the Freightos Air Index shows China-Europe rates at $3.72/kg, relatively stable since mid-July. Meanwhile, China-North America rates rose 4% last week to $5.44/kg.

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