Fronthaul

Fronthaul, also called headhaul, is the leg of a round trip that carries the heavier cargo flow and earns the higher freight rate. On an imbalanced trade lane the dominant direction is the fronthaul and the lighter return is the backhaul, which a carrier often prices below cost to recover some revenue and reposition equipment. The Asia to Europe and Asia to North America westbound and eastbound import legs are classic fronthauls. The fronthaul-backhaul spread reflects directional trade imbalance and drives empty-container repositioning, since boxes pile up at the backhaul end and must be moved back to load.