News / Capacity boost as box trade grows between India and China

JNPA

Container capacity on the trades between India and China is seeing a rapid increase in response to strong green shoots of demand growth.

And Ningbo Ocean Shipping (NOS) is the newest participant in the booming market.

The carrier has debuted through a slot deal on vessels operated by Singapore-based X-Press Feeders, which has significantly expanded its network in recent weeks.

A call from the X-Press Capella this week at Nhava Sheva Port (JNPA) marked the newcomer’s entry into Indian trades. The service offers direct connectivity between the busiest gateways at both ends. In China, Ningbo-Zhoushan, merged in 2006, is said to be the world’s largest cargo tonnage handler, aided by large industrial clusters in and around the harbour.

Ningbo-based NOC claims it has similar booking partnerships with several other mainline carriers, including Cosco, YML, ONE, HMM, Wan Hai, TS Lines and KMTC. The Indian market foray ties in with its efforts to broaden its trade profile in the region from regional NVO to long-haul service provider.

CULines and Sinotrans Container Lines (Sinolines) are also new entrants in the market, bringing aggressive growth strategies.

Last month, CULines added two new intra-Asia services, primarily targeting container trades between China and India. The standalone CGX has a rotation of Qingdao-Shanghai-Ningbo-Shekou-Nansha-Port Klang-Mundra-Karachi-Sohar-Khor Fakkan-Qingdao.

“CULines will continue to monitor global developments and dynamically optimise its services and operations,” the carrier said.

Sinolines, which ventured into India trades in 2023, recently said it was considering adding new port pairs within Asia and beyond to its Indian network “to take advantage of brightening growth potential”. This month it signed contracts with multiple Chinese shipyards for a dozen new containerships – four 8,200-teu vessels, four at 3,000 teu, and four at 1,800 teu – with deliveries expected to begin in 2027.

One major factor driving capacity injection into the intra-Asia market is that ocean freight rates have markedly strengthened alongside demand, industry data reveals.

Sources say trade flows have become more balanced, with Indian exports, to the Far East, China, and Vietnam mainly, gaining pace steadily over the past few years. Historically, carriers had been thriving on imports into India, with little laden-lifting on the eastbound leg.

Jitendra Srivastava, CEO of Mumbai-based Triton Logistics & Maritime, said even as India-China bilateral trade patterns continued to be asymmetrical, the outlook remained increasingly buoyant for logistics service providers.

“The surge in demand is now accelerating shipping frequency, infrastructure expansion and capacity upgrades across major Indian ports to manage growing freight volumes,” he told The Loadstar.

Rates from Shanghai to JNPA are now in the region of $1,800 to $2,000 per 40ft, matching the levels for bookings to North Europe.JNPA to Shanghai rates have moved out of negative territory, and are now hovering at $200 to $250 per 40ft, data indicates.