ASIA/AUSTRALIA CARRIERS REVAMP SERVICES, ALLIANCES

ASIA/AUSTRALIA CARRIERS REVAMP SERVICES, ALLIANCES    COSCO Container Lines and four conference lines in the Asia/Australia trade — “K” Line, MOL, NYK Line and P&O Swire — will revamp their services and alliances in May and June.
   At the end of May, COSCO will stop cooperating with Evergreen, with whom it has operated a joint Japan/North Asia/Australia weekly container service. Instead, COSCO will exchange slots with “K” Line, MOL, NYK Line and P&O Swire between Asia and Australia, starting in June.
   COSCO will continue to operate a weekly China/Australia weekly service with its own ships.
   “K” Line, MOL, NYK Line and P&O Swire, which previously operated two weekly Asia/Australia services, will end one of their two own services, and start taking space on COSCO’s service in the same trade.
   The rotation of COSCO’s China loop is Shanghai, Huangpu, Hong Kong, Sydney,    Melbourne, Brisbane, Hong Kong and Shanghai.
   The service operated by “K” Line, MOL, NYK Line and P&O Swire will have a rotation of Yokohama, Osaka, Nagoya, Pusan, Keelung, Hong Kong, Sydney, Melbourne,    Brisbane and Yokohama.
   An executive at COSCO Japan Co., Ltd. said that the measures reflected a rationalization of vessel deployment in the trade.