News / MSC ship-shopping spree goes on, as charter rates hold steady

MSC has chartered another five box ships, as mainline operators continue chasing market share.

Linerlytica said this week they would be from Greek tonnage provider Danaos – two at 10,114 teu for three years each, at a relatively firm rate of $35,000 a day, with deliveries expected in 2027 when they end their current charters to SeaLead Shipping.

Based on Danaos’s fleet list, the aforementioned pair could be the Express Athens and Express Berlin.

MSC is also reported to have fixed three 4,253 teu ships from Danaos’s off-end 2026 deliveries on 30 months each, at $29,000 a day, likely to be Vancouver, Tongala and Rio Grande.

In addition, Danaos has concluded the charter of another 4,253 teu ship, Monaco, to CMA CGM, for $33,000 a day, for 33-34 months.

Linerlytica said: “Charter rates are still holding across all sizes, with little sign of any imminent reversals. With limited spot vessel availability, the charter market continues to be dominated by forward fixtures, with carriers forced to commit to deliveries into H2 26 and H1 27 for longer periods of up to three years.”

MSC meanwhile, continues to consolidate its pole position among liner operators, having purchased three more ships this month and, reportedly, finalising the acquisition of 15 more.

In the past five years, the Swiss-Italian line, with capacity now of 7.1m teu, has bought 481 ships. Its owned fleet now totals 716 vessels of around 4.5m teu.

Brokers’ reports show that, this month, MSC has bought 2001-built 2,526 teu Honwell, 2008-built 1,840 teu Garwood and 2007-built 1,432 teu Contship Run from Chinese and European owners. The price of Honwell was not disclosed, but Garwood and Contship Run were each sold for around $18m.

By MB Shipbrokers’ calculations, MSC has procured nearly 50 second-hand ships this year, followed by CMA CGM with around 20 buys.