SPOT rates from Asia to north Europe increased 60 per cent last week to US$879 per TEU, according to the Shanghai Containerised Freight Index (SCFI).

The Shanghai-Med SCFI rate increased 39 per cent from the previous week to $941, reported London's Loadstar.

There was some confusion last week, which saw the SCFI reverse months of decline to post increases of $300-$400 per TEU. But Loadstar said forwarders were incredulous, claiming quotations as low as $150 per TEU.

Another cause was carriers cutting capacity with the 2M alliance reducing slots on one loop and the Ocean Three' withdrawing a string for 12 weeks.

The next test will be consumer demand as the peak season gets underway The latest Global Port Tracker review for North Europe projects a decrease of 0.8 per cent in imports this year, compared with 2014.

"We expect very little growth in the three major economies of the UK, France and Germany, in terms of consumer demand," said the report.