News / MSC is bleeding the charter market dry – and keeping rates high

© Michael Vi |

The containership charter market shows no sign of softening as it goes into the usually slack summer season, despite sea freight rates coming under pressure on several tradelanes.

This disconnect is likely to put carriers with expensive long-term charters under financial stress.

Moreover, the driver, the shortage of open tonnage on the market, is being exacerbated by MSC’s insatiable appetite for buying second-hand ships. Its fleet capacity is almost a million teu clear of rival carrier Maersk, approaching 5.1m teu, with a ...