Transpacific capacity reaches all-time peak as freight rates stabilize on a high level
Source
American Shipper
Post Date
10/02/2020
Average weekly capacity in the Asia - North America trade has reached another record level of 530,000 teu this week as Chinese exports peak before the Golden Week Holiday in the first week of October. The offering on the Transpacific has been further increased over the past few weeks as both COSCO Shipping Lines and Wan Hai Lines have organized one additional seasonal service each. COSCO started to deploy five 8,500 - 9,500 teu ships as extra sailers in mid-August.
These additional sailings follow a rotation that covers Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen, Yantian, Los Angeles, Shanghai under the marketing label ¡®SEA¡¯. COSCOs Hong Kong sister company OOCL is co-loading on this seasonal service under the ¡®SC2¡¯ brand.
The Taiwanese carrier Wan Hai Lines meanwhile has started to deploy extra 2,750 - 4,950 teu ships from Haiphong, Yantian, Kaohsiung and Shanghai to Long Beach and back to Haiphong under the ¡®AA1¡¯ label. These sailings add to Wan Hai Lines¡¯ own ¡®CP1¡¯ service, organized in July.
Meanwhile, rates between Shanghai and California seem to have stabilized. The Chinese ministry of Transport and Communications has approached the carriers earlier this month with the request to stop implementing further Gernal Rate Increases
