Matson this morning announced it is dropping its fuel surcharge — again and for the fifth time in two months — in response to declining fueling prices.

The state's largest shipping company sent the notice in a letter to customers today.

Matson is lowering its fuel surcharge by 5.5 percentage points for its Hawai'i service, from 25 percent to 19.5 percent, and its Guam/CNMI and Micronesia service, by 5.5 percentage points, from 26.5 percent to 21 percent, effective Nov. 16.

"For most customers, this represents a decrease in shipping costs ranging from $120 to $200 per container," said Dave Hoppes, senior vice president, ocean services. "We are hopeful this current trend will continue, resulting in further decreases. We will continue to monitor fuel costs and adjust the surcharge accordingly."

Matson's last adjustment to its fuel surcharge was a decrease of 2 percentage points for its Hawai'i, Guam/CNMI and Micronesia services, effective Nov. 2. With this latest adjustment, Matson's fuel surcharge will have been lowered by 22.75 percentage points since Sept. 20; for most customers, this represents an overall decrease in shipping costs ranging from $530 to $845 per container.