New boxship orders beat October deliveries

New boxship orders beat October deliveries    New containership orders outpaced deliveries in October, the first time that's occurred in more than two years, according to maritime news service Alphaliner.
   Roughly 131,000 TEUs of capacity were ordered during the month, while 92,000 TEUs of capacity were delivered (the lowest amount since February).
   'There is significant latent demand for new ships, as owners rush to place new vessel orders after having shied away from the yards for almost two years,' Alphaliner said. 'Since the orderbook peaked at 6.89 million TEUs in August 2008, it has been in continuous decline due to a combination of poor market sentiment and a lack of access to funding. This situation only started to change in June, as the recovery in the freight markets prompted carriers and some non-operating owners to return to the yards. Although the orderbook will not return to the heady levels of 2007 when it reached a peak of 64 percent of the fleet, its size is expected to remain in the 25-30 percent range next year, if present interest levels are maintained.'
   The current orders are likely being spurred, at least in part, by attractive pricing, which Alphaliner said is 20 to 30 percent lower than peak contract prices in the 2007 peak.
   Alphaliner estimates that 86 ships, accounting for 530,000 TEUs of capacity, have been ordered between January and October, with most of the activity occurring since June, headlined by significant orders from Evergreen, APL, and Hamburg S'd. Other orders have been placed by regional and feeder carriers, and by non-operating owners.
   Alphaliner projects another 250,000 TEUs could be ordered in November and December, with China Shipping, Hanjin Shipping and the Shipping Corp. of India each announcing their intent to order containerships.
   Meanwhile, scrapping this year is projected to reach only half of that seen in 2009, Alphaliner said. So far this year, 81 ships, representing 134,000 TEUs of capacity, have been committed for demolition, while the full-year scrapping level is expected to remain less than 150,000 TEUs. In 2010, 204 ships, totaling 378,000 TEUs, were scrapped.