APL LAUNCHES DIRECT ASIA/RED SEA SERVICE

   APL started a dedicated Asia/Red Sea service Wednesday, expanding the container carrier’s Mideast reach to 15 ports.
   The new container terminal at Aden will serves as the Red Sea Express
service’s gateway to the Red Sea region. Port calls for the REX service are Singapore, Aden, Jeddah, Adabiya and Aqaba, with a call at Nhava Sheva on the eastbound return to Singapore.
   "It will enable APL to provide one of the most comprehensive networks in the entire Middle East region," said Y.K. Whye, vice president and head of APL’s intra-Asian services, based in Singapore. APL said the services is the industry’s first dedicated, direct container service between Asia and the Red Sea markets.
   Transit times from Singapore are eight days to Aden, 11 to Jeddah, 14 to Adabiya and 17 to Aqaba. Transit times from the Far East to Red Sea markets will be reduced by two to eight days.
   Eastbound, transit times from Nhava Sheva to APL’s hub in Singapore will be five days.
   The Red Sea Express complements APL’s West Asia Express Service, which serves the Arabian Gulf region. Port rotation on the WAX service is Kaohsiung, Hong Kong, Singapore, Fujairah, Jebel Ali, Fujairah, Colombo, Singapore.