The Ningbo Zhoushan Containerized Sailed Freight Index was launched in Ningbo on May 27, introducing a new benchmark that tracks container shipping prices based on real completed export transactions rather than quoted rates.

Unveiled at the 10th Maritime Silk Road Port Cooperation Forum, the index is designed to provide a more accurate reflection of market pricing in key shipping lanes and reduce reliance on overseas freight benchmarks.

Developed by the Ningbo Shipping Exchange, the index draws on transaction-level data from Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, the world's busiest port by cargo throughput. It is positioned as a high-transparency, low-manipulation-risk benchmark with end-to-end automated data processing.

Unlike most freight indices that rely on forward-looking quotes from freight forwarders, this new system uses only finalized booking prices from shipments that have already been loaded and sailed. This makes it one of the few global benchmarks based strictly on executed trade data.

Following a pilot phase across domestic and international markets, the index is expected to help shippers, carriers, and logistics firms better understand price movements, improve timing decisions, and manage exposure to freight volatility.

It forms part of the broader Maritime Silk Road Index family, which covers shipping, trade, and port activity and already serves users in more than 165 countries and regions. The new index further expands the system's role as a global reference for maritime market conditions.