Asia-N.Europe Freight Rates Dip 20.6 pct

Rates for shipping containers from ports in Asia to Northern Europe fell 20.6 percent to $740 per 20-foot container (TEU) in the week to Friday, a source with access to data from the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index told Reuters.

Freight rates plummeted 15.0 percent from Asia to ports in the Mediterranean, fell 5.4 percent to ports on the U.S. West Coast and were down 3.3 percent to ports on the U.S. East Coast, the source said on Friday.

Maersk Line, the world's biggest container shipper with more than 600 container vessels, in November reported a 61 percent drop in net profit in the third quarter.

The Danish shipping company controls around a fifth of containers transported from Asia to Europe.

Reporting by Ole Mikkelsen