Q2 Liner schedule reliability improves

Q2 Liner schedule reliability improves    Drewry Maritime Research's latest report on container line schedule reliability showed carriers improved upon their first quarter performance in the period from April through June.
   The percentage of ship calls tracked by Drewry's Schedule Reliability Insight rose from 51 percent in the first quarter to 56 percent in the second. It's also an improvement over the 52 percent on-time performance from the second quarter of 2010. Reliability stood at 55 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010.
   'Despite continued freight rate erosion, shippers are getting better service in the east/west routes with reliability rising most in the Asia/Europe/Med, which increased by 13 percentage points against the previous period to 62 percent,' Drewry said.
   Maersk Line regained its customary position as the most reliable of the top 20 carriers (as measured by vessel fleet size) across all the trades covered by Drewry. The Danish line was closely followed by APL and CSAV.

Heaney

   The report now measures carriers within the three major east/west trades, with Maersk leading the way in the Asia/Europe/Med trade, while APL and Hamburg S'd came out on top in the transpacific and transatlantic, respectively.
   'The improved reliability scores achieved by virtually all of the major lines is welcome news,' said Simon Heaney, editor of Schedule Reliability Insight. 'Reliability is certainly a topical issue following Maersk CEO Eivind Kolding's call for a 'revolution' within the industry towards a more customer-focused approach with quality service and ease of transaction at the fore. Let's hope other lines follow the lead and this trend continues into the next quarter and beyond.'