Big 3 carriers cut ships on transpacific

Big 3 carriers cut ships on transpacific The world’s three largest container carriers — Maersk Line, Mediterranean Shipping Co. and CMA CGM — said they will rationalize their transpacific services to the U.S. West Coast, removing about 8,800 TEUs of capacity per week from the trade. Maersk also announced changes other transpacific services. The carriers said they will cut one loop and change the rotation on another loop between Asia and U.S. West Coast by merging their Central and Northern China services, effective Sept. 16. As a consequence, what CMA CGM calls the YANGZI loop, Maersk calls the TP2, and MSC calls the Eagle Express, covering Central and South China, will be suspended after the Sept. 7 departure. That loop had employed five ships averaging 8,850 TEUs, four supplied by Maersk and one by CMA CGM, according to ComPair Data. The reshuffled service, called the BOHAI RIM by CMA CGM, the TP8 by Maersk and New Orient Express by MSC, will be operated with five 8,100-TEU vessels with one supplied by CMA CGM, two by Maersk and two by MSC, offering weekly direct service between China and United States. Rotation will be Dalian, Xingang, Shanghai WGQ, Shanghai Yangshan, Ningbo, Los Angeles, Oakland and Dalian. The service had used five ships averaging 8,067 TEUs in capacity with four supplied by MSC and one by CMA CGM, according to ComPair Data. Other carriers chartering on that service had included Wan Hai, U.S. Lines and Safmarine, which announced earlier this week that it plans to withdraw from the transpacific at the end of next June. The joint initiative allows the lines “to rationalize existing services and capacity to meet market needs,” by providing customers with extensive port coverage in China and weekly direct calls to California ports that are the gateway to the U.S. market, said CMA CGM in a statement “The suspension of the YANGZI service and the extension of the BOHAI RIM service come as an adjustment of existing capacity in the trade. This rationalization of our service will strengthen our China coverage and fully responds to customer needs and market dynamics,” said Jean-Philippe Th’noz, CMA CGM vice president North America Lines. ‘In response to the challenges facing ocean carriers as a result of the global economic downturn, we must continually look at ways to reduce our cost and increase efficiency without significant impact to our customers. We have made good progress in a number of areas, and this revision to our network is a logical next step,’ said Bill Woodhour, North America sales manager for Maersk Line. Maersk said adjustments to its TP5 as well as the TP8 “will ensure continued coverage of the TP2 eastbound scope. TP2’s westbound scope will be covered by TP6, TP5 and TP7.” Maersk said changes include: ‘ TP5 service will continue to cover China, South Korea and Japan and will now call Long Beach, Calif. With a deployment of five vessels, ports of call eastbound are Kwangyang, Busan, Qingdao, Nagoya, Yokohama, Long Beach, Oakland and Dutch Harbor, Alaska. Going westbound, the service will call Long Beach, Oakland, Dutch Harbor, Yokohama, Kwangyang, Busan and Qingdao. Prior calls at Shimizu and Kobe will be assigned to other Maersk Line services. ‘ TP7 will be improved to provide “efficient access to South China, while removing a call at Busan, Korea.” The service will call Yantian, Hong Kong, Kaohsiung, Yokohama, Balboa, Miami, Savannah, Charleston, S.C., and Newark, N.J. The westbound rotation is Newark, Savannah, Miami, Balboa, Los Angeles, Oakland, Yantian, Hong Kong and Kaohsiung. The service will use 12 vessels. ‘ TP8 service will use what Maersk said was TP2’s favorable window in Shanghai. Serviced by five vessels, the rotation is Dalian, Xingang, Shanghai, Ningbo, Los Angeles and Oakland.