ALLIANCES CUT TRANSPACIFIC CAPACITY FOR SLACK SEASON

ALLIANCES CUT TRANSPACIFIC CAPACITY FOR SLACK SEASON    Three of the largest carrier groups in the transpacific container trade are cutting capacity as the end of the busy peak season approaches.
   The New World Alliance of MOL, APL and Hyundai Merchant Marine has terminated its PSV transpacific weekly container service, which employed five ships of about 4,400-TEU capacity. The service had a rotation of Tokyo, Nagoya, Kobe, Kaohsiung, Hong Kong, Yantian, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Vancouver, Seattle and Tokyo.
   Maersk Sealand has suspended its TP5 transpacific service, thereby removing five vessels of about 4,000-TEU capacity from the trade.
   The Grand Alliance of Hapag-Lloyd, NYK Line, OOCL and P&O Nedlloyd confirmed last week that it is discussing plans to reduce vessel capacity in the transpacific container trade.
   Meanwhile, the ending of Trans-Pacific Lines’ transpacific service resulted in a cut in capacity of about 1,700 TEUs a week.
   The slack-season capacity adjustments by the three carrier groups and the termination of the Trans-Pacific Lines service are expected to cut the trade-wide transpacific capacity by about 15,000 TEUs a week.
   In the winter of 2001/2002, the New World Alliance, Grand Alliance and Maersk Sealand had each suspended one of their transpacific loops for the duration of the off-peak period.