Container shipping rates for routes out of Asia hit record highs in June as a result of disruptions to exports from southern China which exacerbated a shortage of equipment in the region and cost knock-on congestion at other ports in the region. S&P Global Platts’s Freight All Kinds (basic) rate assessment for North Asia to the U.K. reached $18,000 per forty-foot equivalent unit (FEU). The difficulties in completing bookings can be seen in comments from a U.S. exporter stating “just to get one booking takes a zillion phone calls, working twice as hard to get a booking...