Daily Industry Briefing
Three pieces of news today will affect your sourcing costs: typhoons at Chinese ports combined with the Golden Week holiday pushed Southeast Asia route freight rates up 12% in just one week; Singapore freight giant PIL has added two direct China-to-Malaysia routes, giving you another booking option; and the debate over Malaysia's electricity tariff SST adjustment hints at the government's stance on tax relief - worth watching if you care about your warehousing and operating costs.
Today's Three Stories
1. Typhoons plus Golden Week: China-to-Southeast Asia freight rates up 12% in a week
Shanghai-to-Southeast Asia route rates rose 12% in the week from 28 August to 4 September, reaching US3 per teu
The Loadstar 路 2026-09-10 路 Read Original ↗
2. PIL adds two China-Malaysia routes, launching in late October and early November
PIL will add two services connecting China, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia - strengthening the existing North China-Indonesia (NCI) route and launching a new China-Singapore-Malaysia (CSM) route
Container News 路 2026-09-22 路 Read Original ↗
3. MCA urges government to cut electricity tariff SST from 8% to 6% or lower
The chairman of MCA's Economy and SME Affairs Committee is urging the government to review the 8% SST on household electricity bills, suggesting it be lowered to 6% or below
Free Malaysia Today 路 2026-09-21 路 Read Original ↗
HASTE Take
Rates are up and routes are more plentiful - don't wait it out, book differently instead
Let's start with rates. The Shanghai-to-Southeast Asia route jumped 12% in a single week, from around US0 to US3 per teu. The reason is simple: Chinese ports have been hit first by typhoons and now by the shipping rush before Golden Week, so ships are queuing for berths and there's less space available - naturally pushing prices up. Keep in mind that US3 is a full-container price; if your cargo is consolidated (LCL), the increase gets spread proportionally across your per-kilo or per-cbm rate. If your goods were already due to arrive by mid-October, booking a week earlier now can help you dodge the worst of the price spike.
This is a condensed version. The full briefing, with every key point, the cost comparison table and the recommended actions, is published on the Haste website:
The content above is compiled from public news reports. For actual freight rates, route schedules and tax policies, please refer to the latest official announcements from shipping lines, freight forwarders and the Malaysian government.
