The world's biggest container shipping company, Maersk Line, said it would raise rates on routes from South Asia and the Middle East to Europe from February 1, but said rates remained unacceptably low.

The company, part of Danish shipping and oil group AP Moller-Maersk, said it would raise rates on 20-foot containers by $300 and rates on 40-foot containers by $600 for transport of dry commodities on those routes.

A Maersk spokesman declined to give the new levels, saying the company only announces the amount of the increase.

"The trading conditions for the carriers operating in these markets are still subject to unacceptable rate levels and the situation is unsustainable in the longer term," Maersk Line said in a statement.

Shipping markets have been hit hard by the global economic downturn, which has sharply reduced trade volumes and freight rates.-Reuters