Germany sea freight updates: China to Hamburg & Wilhelmshaven FCL rates by date

In our quotation log for February to September 2026 the 20GP rate to Hamburg ran from USD 1,180 – USD 3,464 per container across 29 quotations, loaded mainly at Yantian / Nansha. Ocean freight is quoted port-to-port and the figure moves with the weekly GRI, peak-season surcharges and equipment availability, so treat it as a benchmark rather than a fixed tariff and confirm it against your cargo ready date.

The 40ft and 40HQ quotations we logged to Hamburg in February to September 2026 ranged from USD 1,850 – USD 5,400 per container across 35 quotations. A 40ft high cube carries roughly twice the volume of a 20GP for well under twice the freight, so once your cargo passes about 28 CBM the 40HQ is normally the cheaper unit per cubic metre.

Block-train quotations to Duisburg in February to September 2026 ranged from USD 5,950 – USD 9,900 per container. Rail sits between sea and air: typically 18 to 25 days door-to-door to central Europe at a fraction of the air rate. The figure covers the rail leg and, on the services we quote, the customs declaration; pick-up in China and delivery beyond the rail terminal are charged separately.

Yes. During 2026 we logged 53 offers to Germany where equipment or space was available to the desk while the carrier kept the freight rate on request (mostly to Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Wilhelmshaven / Hamburg). That pattern usually means space is open but the tariff is being quoted case by case. Send your cargo ready date and we will come back with the vessel, the sailing and a named price.

Typical port-to-port sailing time from South China is roughly 28 to 42 days; add three to seven days if the cargo loads in North China. Direct services beat transhipment routings by one to two weeks, and schedule reliability, blank sailings and port congestion all move the date. We confirm the actual ETD and ETA against your booking rather than quoting a standard transit time.

Ocean and rail figures are the port-to-port (or terminal-to-terminal) freight only. They exclude origin handling, export customs, THC and CFS, documentation, destination THC, import duty and final delivery, unless the row names a door-to-door or DDP service. Air figures are airport-to-airport per chargeable kilo and exclude pick-up and delivery. Every figure is indicative until it is confirmed against a specific vessel, flight or train and a cargo ready date.

Send the commodity, gross weight, volume, the pick-up city in China and the delivery address in Germany to sales007@goodhopefreight.com. We reply with the applicable service, the named vessel, flight or train, the cut-off and an all-in cost, usually the same working day. If you are weighing up routes, tell us the ready date and we will price sea, rail and air side by side.