The return of the idle fleet?
According to the Swedish maritime platform provider Xeneta, carriers are starting to "balance demand and capacity to protect rates." A capacity reduction of 517,300 teu - or 25% of the initial capacity offering - was witnessed on the Far East to US West Coast corridor over the last five weeks.
Xeneta CEO Patrik Berglund speaks of the skipping of 63 sailings. The other main corridors - Far East to US East Coast and Far East to North Europe - removed less capacity. Yet, the result seems paradoxical.
Berglund commented on this region: "Although a significant number of sailings were blanked - stripping away 13% of capacity (223 000 teu) - this was clearly not enough to counteract weak demand."
Companies participating in Xeneta's benchmarking and market analytics platform include names such as ABB, Electrolux, Continental, Unilever, Nestle, L'Oreal, Thyssenkrupp, Volvo Group and John Deere, amongst others. (sh)