Maersk will apply a US$7,150 per FEU Peak Season Surcharge on dry cargo moving from Northwest India, Nepal and Bhutan to US and Canadian East and Gulf ports from 2 October 2026 — the heaviest figure in a three-lane PSS revision that also rewrites pricing for China–Kenya and Asia–Oceania flows.

The filing exposes wide regional spreads on the M3W and M4W trades serving North America. India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal and Bhutan shipments routed through Houston face US$7,300/FEU under M3W. All-ports cargo from the UAE, Yemen, Oman, Iraq, Kuwait, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain carries US$2,000/FEU on M3W. The parallel M4W service applies a flat US$4,000/FEU for every IMEA origin to every US and Canadian East and Gulf port. All M3W and M4W dry surcharges extend to 40-foot, 40-foot high-cube and 45-foot high-cube equipment at the same per-container level.

What does the IMEA–North America pricing tell shippers?

M3W South Asia rates run roughly 80% above the M4W figure for the same IMEA origin pool, with the steepest surcharges concentrated on direct-call South Asia–East Coast volume. Forwarders with annual BCO contracts negotiated in late 2025 should review their PSS pass-through clauses now: most carrier service contracts filed in recent quarters contain language that lets Maersk recover the new surcharge dollar-for-dollar.

The Middle East differential is also pronounced. Cargo from the nine-country Gulf and Levant origin pool pays US$2,000/FEU under M3W versus US$4,000/FEU under M4W for the same US and Canadian destination list — a pricing gap that gives Middle East shippers a direct economic reason to book M3W tonnage where equipment and schedule permit.

How are the Africa and Oceania lanes priced?

For China and Hong Kong shipments to Kenya, Maersk will levy US$950 on a 20-foot container and US$1,900 on 40-foot and 45-foot equipment from 19 October 2026, applied until further notice. The surcharge applies to non-SPOT bookings based on the Price Calculation Date and explicitly excludes SPOT bookings.

The Asia–Oceania dry-container PSS, effective from a PCD of 1 November 2026, prices Australia, Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands destinations at US$500/20ft and US$1,000/40ft and 40ft-high-cube, while New Zealand, Fiji, American Samoa, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, New Caledonia, Tonga, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna, and Samoa carry US$300/20ft and US$600/40ft and 40ft-high-cube. The origin pool spans China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Cambodia, South Korea, Laos, Brunei, Myanmar, Mongolia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Why does the SPOT carve-out matter?

The China-Kenya surcharge applies only to non-SPOT, contract-priced bookings — letting Maersk preserve digital spot competitiveness on the lane while extracting peak-season rent from BCO cargo at Kenyan discharge ports. Shippers locked into annual Kenya rates will see the full surcharge pass through with no offset.

The Oceania filing contains no such carve-out. The PSS extends to every dry container covered by a 1 November or later PCD regardless of booking channel, exposing both contract and spot customers to the seasonal premium at Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland and the Pacific Island gateways listed.

What trajectory does the filing set?

With three regional PSS applications stacked into a 30-day window from 2 October through 1 November 2026, and none of the three filings carrying a stated end date, Maersk is front-loading its Q4 capacity-management playbook across the Asia export corridors. The China-Kenya surcharge runs "until further notice," the Oceania PSS sets no termination, and the IMEA–North America filing covers the entire 2026 peak window. Forwarders tracking Trans-Pacific and Asia–Africa contract renewals into 2027 should expect the surcharges to remain in force through at least the first half of next year, with upward revisions possible if capacity tightens further.