Drewry’s World Container Index rose for a third successive week, sources indicated on 20 August 2026.
The report noted that the WCI remains the independent, global reference widely used for index-linked contracts. Drewry’s weekly assessment for Thursday 20 August 2026 recorded the latest movement but the published summary did not include lane-by-lane figures in the supplied notes.
Index role and coverage
For many years the World Container Index has served as the go-to benchmark for parties that need a transparent, third-party gauge of container freight costs. The index covers eight principal trade lanes and is used in contract arrangements where an impartial, publishable measure is required.
Drewry and its users say the structure of the WCI supports both global and contractual visibility, and the index’s long record is what underpins its acceptance in index-linked agreements. Organisations that require visibility beyond the eight lanes can request additional regional coverage from the team, the report added.
Latest movement and availability
The WCI’s increase for the third week running was recorded in Drewry’s detailed assessment dated Thursday 20 August 2026, which reports summarised. The supplied notes do not provide numerical values or the specific trade lanes responsible for the rise.
Drewry’s weekly update is routinely relied upon by shipping lines, shippers and contract managers to calibrate pricing clauses and to monitor short-term market direction. The latest upward movement will be incorporated by those referencing the WCI in their index-linked arrangements.
The report reinforces that the WCI remains a go-to resource for contract indexing, while also flagging that bespoke regional data can be arranged for organisations needing finer geographic resolution. Readers were invited to consult Drewry for the full assessment and any lane-specific detail not carried in the summary.
Sources published the item on 20 August 2026 under the heading “Drewry: World Container Index”, reproducing Drewry’s commentary that week. The publication’s summary highlighted the continuity of the index’s role and the availability of expanded coverage on request.
The weekly update from Drewry, as relayed by reports, offers a concise indicator of short-term freight-rate direction while leaving granular lane-level numbers to the original Drewry assessment. Parties using the WCI in contracts or for budgeting should refer to the full Drewry report for the precise figures and trade-lane breakdown.