The shipping agent sources said the feeder vessel operators have lowered the freight rate by at least 30-40 percent as the country's premier port has been free of container congestion, reducing the ship turnaround time to 3.8 days in May from 11.6 days in January.

The shipping lines can now make more voyages than they did before. So, instead of $300-340, the operators charge $230-240 for per twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) on Chittagong-Singapore or Chittagong-Colombo route, the sources pointed out.

The rate however varies from company to company.

The charge for carrying empty container too has come down to $85 per TEU from $170.

Before the cancellation of THC on May 20, the shipping agents used to charge $200 for handling per TEU container and $400 for per forty-foot equivalent unit (FEU).

"The efficiency of the port increased by at least 50 percent and as a result, the cost of business dropped by more than 50 percent," said Mohammad Amirul Haque, chairman of the ship and port standing committee of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI).

Talking to The Daily Star, he said the exporters and importers have been relieved following the decision to cancel THC. "We are expecting more wonders in the coming days," added the business leader.

The cost of handling general cargoes has also been slashed by at least 40 percent, he said.

Earlier, the business community had to incur a loss of at least $286 million a year because of the port's inefficiency. Now that things have improved dramatically they won't have to bear the extra cost anymore, he observed.

"We are happy that the turnaround time has been reduced to less than four days from 11 days," said a leading feeder operator. Every ship had to count at least an additional $10,000 for a day's delay as the daily operating cost is $7,000-8,000 on average.

"Earlier, a ship could not have more than two round-trips on Chittagong-Singapore route a month, whereas now it can comfortably have more than three," he pointed out.

Therefore, the ship owners can carry containers at $30-50 less charge per container than they could do before.

As far as the feeder operators are concerned, the cargo fare has come down by 30-40 percent, said another operator. However, he thinks the main line operators (MLO) might try to add the terminal handling charge in the export-import documents.

According to sources, the off-docks face acute congestion as the containers have been moved there to take pressure off the main jetty.

The Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) thinks the container jam at the off-docks would also ease after installation of necessary handling equipment.

The CPA introduced the berth operating system instead of stevedoring on May 16. Initially, 12 operators have been given charge of handling cargoes at 13 general berths. Out of the berths, six are earmarked for container cargoes while the rest are for general cargoes.

The berth operators have been selected from the existing stevedores. The authorities also fixed different rates for handling containers at the jetty by the berth operators, the source said.

Meanwhile, 15 stevedoring agents have been assigned to handle goods at different moorings and outer anchorage.