BWR: 2M Alliance suspends transatlantic loop

Ocean carriers MSC and Maersk Line will downscale their transatlantic network for the winter season with the suspension of their jointly operated NEUATL4/TA4 between North Europe and the United States East Coast.    The 2M Alliance, comprised of ocean carriers MSC and Maersk Line, will suspend their jointly operated transatlantic NEUATL4/TA4 loop for the winter season effective from the last week of October, the carriers said.
   According to ocean carrier schedule and capacity database BlueWater Reporting, the NEUATL4/TA4 operates with four vessels with an average capacity of 4,363 TEUs, three provided by MSC and one provided by Maersk Line. The loop has a port rotation of Antwerp, Rotterdam, Bremerhaven, New York, Savannah, New York and Antwerp.
   The 2M Alliance will continue its three other dedicated services between North Europe and the East Coast of North America: the NEUATL1/TA1 and the NEUATL2/TA2, which will remain unchanged, and the NEUATL3/TA3, which has added a call to Savannah.
   The adjacent chart, built using data from BlueWater Reporting’s Capacity Report, illustrates how the seasonal suspension of the NEUATL4/TA4 will decrease total weekly deployed capacity on direct container shipping services from North Europe to the East Coast of North America 4 percent, from 104,240 TEUs to 99,877 TEUs.
   Similarly, total weekly deployed capacity on from the East Coast of North America to North Europe will drop 5 percent, from 87,487 TEUs to 83,124 TEUs. .
   Once the suspension takes effect, from the East Coast of North America to North Europe the 2M Alliance alone will go from deploying 26,738 TEUs each week to 22,375 TEUs each week, while on the westbound route, 2M Alliance deployment will fall from 33,421 weekly TEUs to 29,058 weekly TEUs.
   After the suspension, a total of 24 container shipping services will deploy capacity from North Europe to the East Coast of North America, while 20 loops will offer direct connections from the East Coast of North America to North Europe.