It does not mean that the market expects the shipping price to rise in the future, that's not what futures do. It means the spot price is carried at a positive rate into the future, as a no-arbitrage price, accounting for costs and income in holding the contract.
Equivalent-Half-964 t1_je38c2v wrote
Reply to comment by KutteKiZindagi in Who is taking the extra profit here? by n1ck90z
It does not mean that the market expects the shipping price to rise in the future, that's not what futures do. It means the spot price is carried at a positive rate into the future, as a no-arbitrage price, accounting for costs and income in holding the contract.