News / Ship deliveries now set to hit north-south rates, with fleeting calm on Asia-Europe

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There are another 30 ultra-large containerships of between 13,300teu and 19,000teu due from Asian shipyards this year – a 50% increase on the number of such vessels in service at the end of 2013.

Too big for any trade other than Asia-Europe, these leviathans represent an essential part of the strategy of ocean carriers – to deliver lower unit costs on this highly competitive tradelane.

But their impact is now hurting every carrier on every trade, as each arrival triggers a cascade ...