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Korean shipping companies are cutting services while expanding capacity to prepare for falling freight rates, reports Seoul's ChosunBiz.
Carriers are increasing blank sailings and reorganising routes to cope with weak market conditions. Drewry said 75 blank sailings were announced globally this month, up more than 50 per cent from a year earlier, with 35 already set for January.
Alliances including Premier, Gemini and Ocean have reduced services on Asia-Europe routes. The Shanghai Containerised Freight Index stood at 1,656.32 on December 26, down 32.7 per cent from last year despite a weekly gain.
Rates have declined as newbuild deliveries boost supply. Container throughput is expected to rise 3.5 per cent to 255 million TEU this year, while capacity will grow 6.6 per cent to 32.8 million TEU, widening the gap between demand and supply.
The Ocean Alliance plans to resume Suez Canal transits soon, which could push rates back to pre-Red Sea crisis levels. The Korea Maritime Institute projected the SCFI could fall to around 1,100 in 2026.
Despite the outlook, carriers are ordering new ships. Linerlytica said containership orders in 2025 reached 5.08 million TEU, a record high. HMM's capacity rose 8.6 per cent to 970,000 TEU in the third quarter, with more vessels due in 2026.
Sinokor Merchant Marine ordered four 13,000-TEU ships, while SM Line continues to expand midsize capacity. Industry officials said carriers' stronger finances compared with 2015-2016 mean they are unlikely to trigger cutthroat competition.
HMM's debt ratio fell to 25 per cent this year from 362 per cent in 2016, while SM Line and Sinokor also improved balance sheets. Analysts said environmental rules could ease oversupply if older ships are scrapped.
https://www.shippingazette.com/news?news_id=9251200001305
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