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Matson Navigation Co. said it will cut its fuel surcharge for the third time since late August, resulting in a combined 7 percentage-point decrease in six weeks.
Cost of Paradise
Commodity examples of the impact of Matson Navigation Co.’s reduction in its fuel surcharge: 12-ounce canned beverages
>> $60 per 40-foot container
>> 51,744 12 oz. canned beverages in a 40-ft container
>> $60/51,744 = 0.12 cents per can Lettuce
>> $92 per 40-foot container
>> 24,000 heads of lettuce per 40-foot container
>> $92/24,000 = 0.38 cents per head of lettuce Rice
>> $44 per 40-foot container
>> 2,280 20-pound bags of rice per 40-foot container
>> $44/2,280 = 1.95 cents per 20-lb bag Lumber (two-by-fours)
>> $34 per 40-foot flat rack
>> 3,550 two-by-fours per 40-foot flat rack
>> $34/3,550 = 0.96 cents per two-by-four
Source: Matson Navigation Co.
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The state’s largest ocean shipper will reduce the surcharge on Sunday by 2 percentage points to 40.5 percent from 42.5 percent for its Hawaii service due to a drop in the price of bunker fuel used to power its fleet.
The cut represents a $60 to $105 reduction in shipping costs per container for most customers, the company said.
The latest downward adjustment follows a 2 percentage-point decrease on Aug. 28, and a 3 percentage-point cut on Sept. 25.
Even so, Hawaii consumers won’t likely see a decline in prices for food and other products shipped from the mainland, according to Tish Uyehara, marketing director at Armstrong Produce Ltd., a wholesale distributor of fresh foods statewide.
"We really appreciate, in a sense, the cutbacks in the fuel surcharges, and it is reflected in the overall price of the case (of lettuce), but really it breaks down to about 10 cents per case," she said. "If you take it down even further then it appears to be really small."
However, if the downward trend in freight costs continue, it will eventually mean cost reductions for commodities, she said, meaning cheaper prices for consumers.
The surcharge will drop the same day to 42 percent from 44 percent for Matson’s Guam/Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and Micronesia service.
"The cost of bunker fuel, which is the type of fuel consumed by most ocean carriers, rose faster over the past year than crude oil and has been slower in experiencing declines in prices," said Dave Hoppes, Matson senior vice president, ocean services. "Fortunately, bunker fuel prices have moderated recently, allowing us to make this third decrease."
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