Yes — but slowly, and surface rust is cosmetic, not structural. Containers are made of corten ("weathering") steel, which forms a thin layer of stable rust on the surface that actually protects the steel underneath from corroding further.
Corten steel is the same alloy used in outdoor sculpture and architecture exactly because of how it rusts. The surface develops a brown patina that's chemically different from the destructive rust you see on a regular steel post. The patina seals the steel underneath — corten rusts in the first year or two, then essentially stops.
Cargo-Worthy containers ship with that patina already developed. The orange-brown patches you see along edges, corner castings, and around the doors are cosmetic and won't get worse. Aggressive sandblasting + repainting can reset the surface, but it's not necessary for structural integrity.
Where rust does become a problem: spots that stay constantly wet (standing water on the roof, bottom rails in soggy soil), spots where steel is in contact with dissimilar metals (galvanic corrosion at hardware attachment points), and spots that were damaged in transit and never resealed. All preventable with basic placement + occasional inspection.
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