Maersk sets peak season surcharge on China–Kenya cargo at US$1,000 per 20-foot container from 9 November

Maersk will charge a peak season surcharge of US$1,000 per 20-foot container and US$2,000 per 40-foot or 45-foot container on cargo from mainland China and Hong Kong to Kenya from 9 November, under a notice issued on 26 October, the shipping news site Container News and the Kenyan news site Kenyans.co.ke reported on 27 October. The rates stay in force until further notice. The Kenyan news sites Sacco Review and Kenya Today gave the same figures.

The same notice covers Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, where the surcharge is US$1,200 per 20-foot container and US$2,000 per 40-foot or 45-foot container. The surcharge is generally collected at the port of origin, unless importers and shipping agents agree otherwise. Unlike the surcharges Maersk applied from 15 June and 19 October, which covered non-spot bookings only, the new surcharge also applies to spot bookings, priced on the booking confirmation date or the vessel's scheduled departure date.

From 19 October the surcharge on cargo from mainland China and Hong Kong to Kenya was set at US$950 per 20-foot container and US$1,900 per 40-foot or 45-foot container, Container News reported on 5 October.

The new Kenya rates are the same as those Maersk applied from 15 June. For Dar es Salaam the June rates were US$1,000 per 20-foot container and US$1,400 per 40-foot or 45-foot container, Container News reported on 1 June.

Kenya imported goods worth KSh 671.2 billion from China in 2025, up 16.5 per cent from KSh 576.1 billion in 2024, according to Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) data reported by Business Daily on 3 May. Exports to China fell to KSh 16.9 billion from KSh 26.3 billion, and the trade deficit with China reached a record KSh 654.3 billion.