CHINA SHIPPING REPORTS 45% JUMP IN CONTAINER VOLUME

CHINA SHIPPING REPORTS 45% JUMP IN CONTAINER VOLUME    China Shipping Group, the expansion-minded Chinese state-owned group, said that it increased its volume of containers carried by 44.7 percent in 2001, to 2.17 million TEUs.
   The rapid rise in volume of the Chinese carrier means that it now carries as much containerized freight as long-established liner carriers such as NYK Line, Hanjin Shipping and Hapag-Lloyd, according to industry figures compiled by ComPairData, the global liner shipping database.
   China Shipping Group was established in 1997 through the merger of three Chinese shipping lines, and only entered the deepsea container trades in 1999.
   China Shipping Container Line, the container shipping arm of the diversified Chinese shipping group, is believed to be its fastest-growing activity. In April, China Shipping Group said that its five-year plan forecasts a development of its container fleet to make the company “among the top shipping lines in the world.” The group has also set up a terminals division and is developing a new container terminal in the port of Los Angeles.
   China Shipping Group said that its “economic income hit (a) record high” last year. The Chinese group discloses only limited financial information.
   During 2001, China Shipping Container Line expanded its capacity in the transpacific trade by phasing in a series of new 5,500-TEU ships, and entered the Mediterranean/U.S. trade. The carrier has postponed the introduction, initially planned for last year, of its first northern Europe/U.S. container service.