More carriers add transpacific capacity

More carriers add transpacific capacity    CMA CGM, Wan Hai Lines and Norasia Container Lines are the latest carriers to confirm the addition of transpacific capacity for this year’s peak season.
   The three shipping lines have filed a vessel-sharing agreement with the Federal Maritime Commission that will allow them to operate the joint service connecting ports in China, South Korea and the U.S. West Coast.
   A spokesman for CMA CGM said that the new “Shanghai Express” service, starting in June, will use vessels of 3,000-TEU capacity. He said the ships would serve the Chinese region around Shanghai and Ningbo and call at ports in California, but could not provide details of the final itinerary.
   Hyundai Merchant Marine, Great Western, Hanjin Shipping, COSCO Container Lines and “K” Line have already said that they are adding services or introducing larger ships in the transpacific. But the capacity plans of the Maersk Sealand and the Grand Alliance in the Pacific trade this year are unknown.