A free report from ComPair Data shows that headhaul ocean freight rates are in the doldrums again on key lanes to North America and Europe, primarily due to reluctance by ocean carriers to pull enough capacity during the most recent slack season.

A new quarterly report from ComPair Data, Rate-Capacity Nexus, shows how capacity and rates fluctuated throughout 2010, giving a complete picture of how these two crucial variables are influenced by one another. Click here to download the first report for free now: www.compairdata.com/reports/rcn1.asp

The report uses rate information from partner SeaIntelligence.com and ComPair Data's detailed allocated capacity estimates on a host of key trades to and from North America. Rates from SeaIntelligence.com are based on average all-in, port-to-port FAK rates, on a 40-foot-equivalent unit basis.

Rate-Capacity Nexus provides:

• A crystal clear view into how rates from Asia to the United States plummeted in the fourth quarter as carriers refrained from pulling capacity as they had in the latter stages of 2009

• Clarity on the rise in U.S. export rates in the fourth quarter, despite little to no capacity withdrawals

• A comprehensive table of rates and capacity, quarter-by-quarter for 54 port pairs

The report is the first in a series, with more than 75 port pairs to be added in future reports.

Source: American Shipper