Container lines

Liner operators in THE Alliance will switch transits on three services as low water levels on the Panama Canal reduce the number of ships that can use the main artery for container trade between the US East Coast and Asia.

The rare joint statement reiterates earlier comments by container lines that a greenhouse gas pricing mechanism is needed to make green fuel competitive with traditional bunkers during the phase when both fuels will be in use.

While container volumes have largely returned to normal historical levels, ocean carriers still have not been able to restore performance to pre-pandemic levels.

Although the incoming capacity will outstrip demand on the major trades over the next two years, the capacity overhang that has been touted in many corners of the shipping sector is being overstated, says an industry analyst.

The westbound trades out of Asia are heading into tender season with carriers attempting to lift rate levels before locking in long-term contracts being eroded by surplus capacity.

The move complements a flurry of Asia-India service additions by niche regional carriers and newer feeder operators in recent months.

Despite initially failing to meet capacity commitments, the carrier extended the contract for three months at the original rate, saving the shipper $180,000.

European regulators have never had enough information to effectively monitor the container shipping industry since the consortia block exemption rule was introduced in 2009, according to Olaf Merk.

The intra-Asian region is expected to be a hotbed of mergers and acquisitions in container shipping because that is where the growth in container demand is centered, writes analyst Lars Jensen.

Given the persistent downward pressure on demand, it remains to be seen if India-US carriers will be able to push through a new round of modest rate hikes planned for December.

The carrier is looking to expand beyond its two current services jointly offered with other liners with a standalone service meant to take advantage of the growing shift in sourcing from India.

On its own, the growth in container volumes on Asia to Europe trade lanes in the third quarter was impressive, but it compares with the steep slowdown in imports last year by overstocked retailers.

With peak season at hand for ag exports, shippers say weak US import volumes have constrained the supply of repositioned containers they need to send goods overseas, risking disruption to their supply chains.

The carrier’s largest alternative fuel deal to date will be enough to drive half the methanol-powered ships on its orderbook.

The soonest the Panama Canal Authority says it could see significant relief is 2028, raising the possibility of persistent drought restrictions and reduced container capacity and transits until then, writes Journal of Commerce Executive Editor Mark Szakonyi.

Despite some pockets of progress, exactly how container shipping achieves decarbonization will likely remain an unanswered question until new zero-emission fuel standards are adopted, writes Peter Tirschwell.

Draft legislation would also seek to codify that rail demurrage fees be billed to the ocean carrier, which would then pass along the charge to the responsible shipper or BCO. .

Just a month after the European Commission announced that the block exemption regulation for carriers would not be renewed next April, the UK competition authority has also called for it to lapse upon expiry.

CMA CGM is moving beyond funding and supporting startups with a hefty investment into a non-profit lab designed to improve data models that feed into artificial intelligence products.

Still, the latest Indian trade data presents some hopeful signs for supply chain stakeholders, as the country's merchandise exports grew 6.3% by value year over year in October, the fastest rate of expansion in a year.

Carriers, shippers and logistics executives may have to get accustomed to drought-related restrictions along the critically important waterway, with costly water-saving infrastructure improvements years away.

The carrier is expecting next year to be dominated by significant overcapacity and weak demand, and with its balance sheet awash with expensive time charter capacity, it decided to factor in expected losses early.

Carriers are reporting some successes in convincing shippers to use their emissions-reduction services, but acceptance of premium — and costly — green products remains a hard sell in a market where rate levels are at record lows.

The long-standing spread, typically about $1,000, is now half that as volume growth returns to West Coast ports and shippers increasingly tap into Southeast Asia manufacturing.

The International Maritime Organization voted in May 2022 to implement the so-called Maritime Single Window from the start of 2024 in a bid to accelerate digitalization in shipping.

Yang Ming said the imbalance between vessel supply and cargo demand, high inflation and geopolitical risks will be among the factors pressuring the ocean market into 2024.

The incident comes as dockworkers announced a further series of strikes this week at DP World's four Australian terminals in an ongoing row over new rostering arrangements.

The carrier remains profitable, but rate levels maintained their downward trend as the global economic slowdown continued to weigh on the container shipping industry.

Despite public commitments by some 4,000 companies globally to reduce Scope 3 emissions, ocean shippers have thus far been unwilling to pay higher-than-market freight rates to achieve those goals.

The South Korean carrier ‘s financial results followed the industry’s downward trend and although HMM remains profitable, it is not far above the loss-making line.

Carriers and shippers, however, believe there is little room left to fall for spot rates that are already below pre-pandemic levels.

The carrier has followed its peers with a sharp decline in earnings, and although still highly profitable, its CEO warned that rates on the east-west trade lanes are at unsustainable levels.

The cracks in the gateway’s attractiveness to importers and exporters out of the US Midwest were showing before this July’s work stoppage and the decline in import demand across North America.

The ILA president says further progress on a new master contract, as well as port-specific local deals, can’t happen until the two sides agree on coastwide pay hikes.

US e-commerce imports are filling much of the available air cargo capacity out of China, spurring the ocean carrier to bring back an expedited service it was forced to mothball eight months ago.

On top of the sailing cuts, some recent vessel arrivals at India have been behind schedule by up to a week, resulting in cargo rollovers, according to forwarder sources.

Shipper associations that struggled to grow during the COVID-19 pandemic because there was no extra capacity to sell are now trying to convince shippers of the benefits of rate stability.

While the carrier will not hold the controlling share, expanding its presence in Hamburg will cement MSC’s terminal operating position in Europe’s third-largest container shipping port.

The Singapore-based carrier has now expanded its access to capacity in the strategic locations of the US West Coast, North Europe and Southeast Asia.

Ahead of an International Longshoremen’s Association conference, president Harold Daggett has warned union rank-and-file to be prepared for the “possibility of a coast-wide strike.”