News / Carriers boxed in by too much surplus – and costly – equipment

© Kamonrutm

Ocean carriers are ramping-up efforts to off-hire surplus leased containers or retire their ageing boxes to reduce huge storage costs.

With the global downturn in demand, and a collapse in freight rates across many tradelanes, carriers are laser-focused on cutting costs, and storing surplus containers is a significant drain on profitability.

There is substantial oversupply from a global pool of some 55 million teu of equipment, with thousands of surplus boxes laying idle in depots around the world.

In August, container leasing companies, ...