The health crisis has had little effect on New Caledonia.
Overall, the cost of freight from Asia has risen dramatically. One of the reasons for this is the lack of containers that have been stored in the US. Between China and France (including New Caledonia), the cost of freight increased up to five times between October and December 2020. This increase did not occur in New Caledonia. It was only a few hundred dollars. Caledonians are lucky. That’s 80% of the freight volume that comes into Caledonia. The rest comes from Asia.
Hope it will last
Here are the shipping rates for a 20-foot container from France (Marseille or Le Havre). We have looked at prices from several companies (MSC, CGA/CGM, Marfret and Swire). Some companies do not communicate their prices, as they may change upwards due to the global health crisis. These prices include freight, handling and taxes. The question is how long will prices remain so low?
Nouméa: between 181,000 and 227,383 francs. (2,359 to 2,963 Australian dollars)
Papeete: between 202,012 and 434,062 francs (AUD 2,633 to 5,657)
Sydney and Melbourne: between 282,194 and 315,683 francs. (AUD 3,678 to 4,114)
Perth: between 282,194 and 305,172 francs. (AUD 3,678 to 3,977 AUD)
Adelaide: between 282,194 and 316,900 francs. (AUD 3,678 to 4,130)
Brisbane: between 317,379 and 324,559 francs. (AUD 4,136 to 4,260)
Port-Vila: 457,997 francs. (AUD 5,969)
Wallis: 727,267 francs. (9,479).
Photo by Jonas Smith on Unsplash.
