LOS ANGELES: The off-contract ocean container shipping rate from China to the US East Coast has returned to levels seen after COVID-19 upended global trade, and could set new record highs as the US and Israeli war on Iran drives fuel costs higher. The spot rates on that route hit $10,948 per 40-foot container, more than quadrupling since the start of the Iran war on February 28, according to data from freight pricing platform Xeneta. “That leaves freight rates on these critical trades just sho
