As a light steel structure

the horizontal lateral resistance is an important parameter for the aseismic design of container house

while there is no reliable theoretical calculation formula. To provide reference for design and improve the theoretical system of corrugated skin structure

this paper deduced the calculation formula of lateral stiffness of container house. Different from the traditional skin structure using bolt connections

the side wall plate and steel frame of container house are connected by welding

the shear stress distribution and deformation composition in plane vary greatly

and the key point of solution is to analyze the diaphragm effect of corrugated plate under the welding boundary condition. Based on the energy theory and ABAQUS finite element simulation

the ideal lateral stiffness under uniformly horizontal distributed load and the local deformation under concentrated load at the top corner fitting were analyzed respectively. Then the calculation formula of lateral stiffness was derived

and it was verified by the experimental data. The results show that: under the concentrated load

the local deformation is much larger than the overall lateral displacement and the local effect ranges with the beam stiffness and the specifications of the container. In practical engineering

it is effective to increase the beam's effective sectional area or the amounts of connecting components for reducing the local deformation and improving the whole lateral stiffness.