Alphaliner

03/06/2026

📢 Far East - Europe and Africa absorb most of fleet growth!

📉 The effect of the military conflict in the Middle East on shipping is clearly visible in the global container fleet deployment per trade. Vessel capacity deployed in services to the Middle East and India is down 7.6% year-on-year.

🔄 For the other trades, we see a continuation of the trends of the previous years. The largest trade, Far East - Europe, continues to grow strongly. Capacity deployed in African services saw a spectacular 25.3% increase year-on-year. Latin America also continues to be an important growth region for liner shipping.

🗓️ The capacity of the global container fleet increased 5.7% during the past twelve months to 33.9 Mteu. Between May 2025 and May 2026 another 1.84 Mteu of new teu slots were added to the fleet.

📊 A very large part of the new capacity was absorbed by the Far East – Europe trade. An extra 667,400 teu slots were deployed on this route, representing 36% of all the newly added fleet capacity. Overall vessel capacity was up 8.5% year-on-year.

📈 After an already impressive 11.7% increase between May 2024 and 2025, some carriers were still short of tonnage to staff all Far East – Europe loops which are deviating around the Cape of Good Hope due to the Red Sea crisis.

🔍 With 25% of the global fleet now trading there, it is by far the largest shipping lane for the liner fleet. Three years ago, the percentage stood at 20.8%. It might further increase as long as carriers cannot sail through the Strait of Hormuz.

✅ Read the full story and subscribe for the latest news in Liner shipping at https://public.axsmarine.com/alphaliner/publications.

27/05/2026

📢 Route trends lead to range of Q1 operating margins for lines!

🗓️ The average operating margin for the leading container carriers reached 5.2% in the first quarter of 2026, practically unchanged on the previous three months, but the result disguised a wide variety of individual performances by the lines.

📊 While the average ratio of EBIT return on carriers’ revenues remained in positive territory, and only marginally lower than the previous quarter’s 5.3% average, the gap between well and poorly performing lines grew more clearly in the period, forming two distinct groups.

📉 As in the previous quarter, three carriers declared operating losses: ZIM, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd reported EBIT of -USD 5 M, -USD 174 M and -USD 192 M on shipping activities for the period.

ℹ️ This produced negative operating margins ranging from –0.4% (essentially a break-even result) to –3.6%. It was Maersk’s second consecutive quarter of operating losses for its Ocean division.

💲The lines, which operate above average capacity on the Transatlantic, suffered from shrinking export volumes out of Europe, which impacted both volumes and prices.

🔍 Also at the low end of the range, Yang Ming and ONE returned to profit in Q1 after slumping to a deficit in the fourth quarter of 2025.

✅ Read the full story and subscribe for the latest news in Liner shipping at https://public.axsmarine.com/alphaliner/publications.

25/05/2026

❓How much time is your team spending reacting to schedule changes instead of anticipating them?

🧠 Alphaliner Predict helps you stay proactive by giving you real-time visibility into containership fleet port calls, including accurate ETA, ETB & ETD insights across global liner services.

🛰️ Powered by decades of container shipping history and live operational signals, Alphaliner Predict API enables you to:

🔸 Automate schedule intelligence
🔸 Anticipate disruption before it hits operations
🔸 Reduce manual intervention and reactive firefighting
🔸 Scale predictability across networks and customers

📊 From terminals and ports to logistics providers and shippers, better predictability means stronger supply chain performance.

👉 Learn more and book your demo at https://public.axsmarine.com/alphaliner-predict 🔮

21/05/2026

📢 Mirna Haddadin, Sinem Sen, Mael Pape-Léostic and Johnny Dewan from Signal were on the ground at TOC Europe in Hamburg this week.

🌍 It was a great event filled with meaningful catch-ups and conversations with clients throughout - exactly the kind of connection that makes these gatherings worthwhile.

💭 Thank you to everyone who stopped by to connect!

20/05/2026

📢 European carriers control most of Europe-ECSA & WCSA trades!

🌍 The trades between Europe and the two coasts of South America are largely controlled by four European carriers. MSC, Maersk, CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd together operate 93.3% of all capacity, based on April figures.

💪 COSCO SHIPPING and Ocean Network Express (ONE) are the only Asian carriers trading between Europe and the East and West Coasts of South America, with a joint market share of 6.2%. This leaves only 0.5% for two niche carriers.

ℹ️ A total of 99 container ships were trading between Europe and ECSA & WCSA in April, representing a total capacity of 710,530 teu or 2.1% of the total cellular container fleet.

🚢 The Europe – ECSA trade was host to 49 ships with a total capacity of 369,573 teu. This was slightly larger than the Europe – WCSA trade with 50 ships totalling 340,957 teu. The average size of the ships trading to the East Coast is 7,542 teu. This compares to 6,819 teu for the West Coast.

🥇 MSC is now the market leader on both routes. Its market share by capacity deployed between Europe and ECSA stands at 34.8%. The Geneva-based carrier increased its capacity 4.1% year-on-year.

📉 This was enough to take over the number one position from Maersk. The Danish shipping line reduced its capacity by 13.0% y-o-y by shifting a series of 10,589 teu ‘Cap San-class’ ships to the Asia – Latin America trade in a swap with ‘L-class’ ships of 8,850 teu, which are now deployed in the Europe – ECSA ‘Samba’ service.

🔄 Despite this vessel swap, Maersk still has a strong market position with a 31.9% share.

✅ Read the full story and subscribe for the latest news in Liner shipping at https://public.axsmarine.com/alphaliner/publications.

19/05/2026

📈 Struggling to keep pace with constant changes in the container shipping market? Between fleet developments, vessel movements, and shifting trade patterns, fragmented data can slow down critical decisions.

🔍 With Alphaliner, you get a reliable, real-time view of the global liner industry - transforming complex market data into actionable intelligence.

🚢 Track fleets, monitor services, analyze orderbooks, and stay on top of market developments through one trusted platform used across the shipping industry.

⚡ Replace manual research and disconnected sources with faster insights, smarter planning, and greater confidence in your strategic decisions.

👉 Discover how Alphaliner helps industry professionals stay ahead in a fast-moving market at https://public.axsmarine.com/alphaliner?utm_source=social+media&utm_medium=linkedin&utm_campaign=generic_post

15/05/2026

📢 The global container supply chain community is gathering in Hamburg - and we'll be there!

🌍 Next week, TOC Europe will bring together the world's leading minds in port and terminal operations for three days of breakthrough technologies, forward-thinking strategies, and connections that matter. With 4,500+ attendees, 100 thought-leading speakers, and 900 port & terminal executives from over 100 countries - this is where the future of the industry takes shape.

🤝 Our Sinem Sen and Mirna Haddadin will be on the ground, connecting with senior decision-makers from across ports, terminals, and maritime logistics, and exploring the partnerships and opportunities that drive businesses forward.

📍 If you're heading to Hamburg, reach out to Sinem or Mirna - they'd love to connect in person!

13/05/2026

📢 MSC has almost half of the North Europe - Med market!

🚢 MSC controls nearly half of all cellular capacity deployed in the North Europe - Mediterranean trades which as per 1 May stands at 360,517 teu.

📈 The Geneva-based carrier has by far the highest market share of all carriers in the North Europe - Med service segment. It reaches 45.5%, more than double that of its overall 21.6% global market share, placing it well ahead of all competing operators.

🌍 Alphaliner has identified only ten carriers offering regular liner services between North Europe and the Mediterranean.

💪 Seven of these are established Main Line Operators (MSC, CMA CGM, Maersk, COSCO Shipping Lines, ONE, ZIM and Hapag-Lloyd), collectively accounting for 97.3% of the total North Europe - Med capacity.

📊 This leaves a combined share of just 2.7% for the three regional carriers Tailwind Shipping Lines, Borchard Lines and Akkon Lines.

✅ Read the full story and subscribe for the latest news in Liner shipping at https://public.axsmarine.com/alphaliner/publications.

08/05/2026

⏪ Looking back at last month's breaking news, container shipping developments showed a market adjusting on multiple fronts: from fleet ownership to operating speeds.

📰 Based on Alphaliner’s Weekly Newsletter:
🔸 Far East–Oceania capacity surged by 12%, outpacing global fleet growth
🔸 MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company and CMA CGM led the expansion, reshaping rankings on the route
🔸 The decline of Non-Operating Owners slowed, but carriers continued absorbing tonnage
🔸 Regional carriers outperformed global lines, driven by strong intra-Asia demand
🔸 Rising bunker prices pushed fleet speeds to their lowest levels in over two years

📌 The takeaway: growth continues, but it’s becoming more selective, more regional, and more cost-driven.

📝 We’ve summed up the major container shipping developments we reported throughout April in our latest blog.

👉 Read our recap here:

Catch up on container shipping news reported in April 2026, including Far East–Oceania growth, re**er capacity expansion, NOO fleet shifts, regional carrier profits, and slower vessel speeds.

07/05/2026

⏪ Looking back at April, container shipping data revealed just how abnormal current market conditions were.

🕵️ Based on Alphaliner insights:
🔸 Container ship transits through Hormuz remained extremely limited, even after the ceasefire
🔸 Several vessels were attacked or seized, marking a clear escalation in risk
🔸 International liner participation became sporadic and highly selective
🔸 Global fleet capacity expanded beyond 34 Mteu, with MSC exceeding 7.3 Mteu
🔸 The market remained fully employed, but partly because capacity was effectively trapped or diverted

📝 We’ve broken this down in our latest data-driven article recapping the main container ship trends observed throughout April.

💡 Read our full blog:

Explore container ship data trends reported in April 2026, including Hormuz disruption, vessel attacks, fleet exceeding 34 MTEU, and tight market conditions.