New World Alliance, CMA CGM reducing Asia/U.S. East Coast capacity

New World Alliance, CMA CGM reducing Asia/U.S. East Coast capacity
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New World Alliance carriers APL, Hyundai Merchant Marine and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, together with service partner CMA CGM, will skip sailings on their joint Asia/U.S. East Coast service from mid-December through to the end of March.
   The service is marketed by the New World lines as the East Coast Savannah Express (ESX) while CMA CGM calls the loop SAX. The port rotation is Ningbo; Shanghai; Chiwan; Hong Kong; Manzanillo, Panama; Savannah; New York; Norfolk; and Ningbo again.
   MOL said the missed sailings on the ESX/SAX would reduce its capacity in the Asia/U.S. East Coast trade by 13 percent.
   “APL, HMM, MOL and CMA CGM confirm that service will continue to be provided at all existing port locations, and the carriers will have sufficient capacity to meet demand for cargo transportation services in the transpacific during the winter season,” the carriers said in a joint statement.
   Space in the trade will be further reduced when Evergreen Line and Zim Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. terminate their joint weekly Asia USA Express (AUX) service from the first quarter of next year.
   Previously, the New World Alliance said it is cutting its Asia/U.S. West Coast capacity by up to 15 percent through the slack winter season as they are faced with unprecedented rises in operating costs, particularly for fuel.