Western Railroad Discussion > How much does it cost to ship a container from China to

Like the subject says, how much does it cost to ship a couple hundred containers from China to the West Coast and then on a train to Atlanta?

Thanks,
Patrick

The pricing can vary greatly, such as on size (20'-40'-45'), and whether or not it's refrigerated. Additional price variations may come from the level of service selected; will the container be loaded at an on-dock rail terminal, or will it have to be drayed (trucked) to an intermodal loading facility. I believe the going rate for a standard 40' container going port-to-port from Asia to L.A. may be in the $1,500 range. Toss in a rail movement, and my guess is that that could add another $1,000 or so, depends on whether or not a shipping agreement exists between the maritime company and a particular railroad.
Ted S-P

Sorry to beat this to death, but I forgot something. Taxes, tariffs, customs charges etc. will also add to the sum, don't know how much those might throw on.
Ted S-P

Add hazmat (if any OUCH!) and fuel surcharges which have become so outrageous that they are listed seperately (Like a water usage fee at a Nevada hotel in that the quoted price only the beginning!)

2 or 3 hundred American jobs.

Bob

You would be better off shipping through the Panama canal, dischargin the container in Charleston, Savanna, or similar east coast terminal. Why are you asking?
Greg

AlexanderCasset Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You would be better off shipping through the
> Panama canal, dischargin the container in
> Charleston, Savanna, or similar east coast
> terminal. Why are you asking?
> Greg

Currently the Panama Canal is oversaturated with traffic, current wait time to get through is 2 days in addition to the added 5 days of seatime. There are vessel restrictions through the canal, as "panamax" ships are the largest ones that are able to traverce through the canal. The newer ships, with 5-8K TEU capacity are not able to go through on account of their size.
Ted S-P

There are container shippers on the web. I don't have links now but they were easy to find a couple-three years ago when i raised the same question. IIRC, the price California-Greece was around $4K/container. A batch might get better prices. Go surfing...

I just wanted to get an estimate for transportation costs for a school project.

Thanks for all of the replies!

Patrick

2 or 3 hundred American jobs.

Bob

Well put

The really important figure is missing from all the contributions above. What are the goods in the container worth? A fee of several thousand dollars is nothing if the goods in the container are worth several million dollars, which could easily be the case if the container is filled with top end electronics, clothing, or machine parts etc. I once read somewhere that the typical container holds about a million dollars worth of merchandise. Is that figure a reasonable, ball park estimate?

Good question from that last thread...sure, they ship everything from widgets to multi-million dollar bits of machinery. From the shipping standpoint, a TEU is a TEU, its the insurance that might ratchet up the total sum of the shipment.
Ted S-P

There is a much different rate structure between something like, say waste paper than garments, or any other commodity. Also, the Panama canal may be at capacity, but many shipping lines use it daily for Panamax vessels (or smaller), so that is not an issue unless the question involves reefers with a transit time limitation that need to be railed or trucked cross country.
Also, you are asking about a headhaul trade, much more expensive, though costs are *similiar*.
Finally, a TEU is nto a TEU, there are weight issues, stack siz, is it a 40 or 45' does the vessels on that trade have room for one or another, is it a high cube, etc...
Rough cost to a shipper with some volume would probably be in the $4000 or $6000 range for a 40' dry container.
Regards