Container Shipping News

It would be "unwise" to assume that the situation in the Strait of Hormuz will return to how it was before the Iran war, the head of French shipping group CMA CGM said on Tuesday.CMA CGM, the world's third-largest container line, is among firms with vessels stranded inside the Gulf since the start of the conflict that has virtually closed the waterway, which carries a fifth of global oil and LNG supply."Even if a solution for peace is implemented in the coming weeks, there's no guarantee there won't be another crisis later on and we can't be prisoners to Hormuz…

A Tanzania-registered container ship, Golden Star 1, sank about 6 km off Batam, Indonesia, on June 5 at around 10:30pm local time.The vessel reportedly took on water and subsequently sank. All nine crew members were safely rescued by the Indonesian authorities.The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore has issued navigational broadcasts advising vessels to exercise caution when transiting the area, and to report any sighting of containers adrift.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration in maritime decarbonization, digitalization, innovation, and manpower development.The MoU underscores the shared commitment of MPA and MSC to foster a sustainable, digital, and future-ready maritime sector, while enhancing MSC’s operational and business activities in Singapore. This year also marks the 30th anniversary…

The CMA CGM Group has appointed Esra Bora as Managing Director of ANL Container Line and General Manager of CMA CGM Oceania agencies, based in Melbourne, Australia.Bora will oversee the Group’s activities across the Oceania region, as well as the strategy and operations of ANL Container Line. She succeeds Shane Walden, who has resigned from his positions at ANL and CMA CGM.Bora brings more than 18 years of experience in the maritime industry, including over eight years within the CMA CGM Group.

CMA CGM delivered a resilient first quarter, but the numbers underscore the increasingly complex environment facing the global container shipping and logistics giant.The Marseille-based group reported first-quarter revenue of $13.23 billion, essentially flat year-over-year, while EBITDA fell 31.6% to $2.11 billion and net income dropped sharply to $250 million, down from $1.12 billion a year earlier.For the shipping division, the picture was mixed. Volumes rose 1.5% to 5.93 million TEU, but maritime revenue declined 8.5% to $8.02 billion as average revenue per container weakened nearly 10%.

Shipping giants CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd said on Sunday they had suspended all bookings to and from Cuba until further notice, with both citing a U.S. executive order issued on May 1, in the latest blow to the crisis-wracked island's economy.The temporary suspension of new orders by two of the world’s largest shipping companies could jeopardize as much as 60% of Cuba's shipping traffic by volume, two sources with direct knowledge of the situation said - a fresh hit to a country already nearing collapse amid a U.S. oil blockade that has throttled the island's fuel supply.“Following the U.S.

The CMA CGM Group has signed a high-level framework agreement for joint cooperation with Keynan institutional authorities to develop Kenya’s logistics and port capacity.The objective is to accelerate solutions that support the growth of supply chain flows in and out of east and Central Africa including maritime demand, inland logistics and freight management.It has been signed as part of the Africa Forward Summit, and in the presence of the Presidents of the French and Kenyan Republics, M.

Descartes Systems Group has released its May Global Shipping Report which found that U.S. container imports decreased by 3.2% in April 2025, as trade uncertainty and geopolitical risks persist.In April 2026, U.S. container import volumes decreased by 3.2% over March to 2,277,965 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). China-origin imports decreased 4.3% month-over-month and 15.3% year-over-year, according to the latest report by Descartes.West Coast ports reclaimed market share lead over East and Gulf Coast ports and port transit delays improved broadly over March.

In the first quarter of 2026, Port of Antwerp‑Bruges handled 65.5 million tons of maritime cargo, a decrease of 3.2% compared to the same period last year.After a weak start in January and February, throughput recovered in March. General cargo (-4.4%) – in particular containers and conventional general cargo – was under pressure, while bulk cargo remained stable (-0.6%) and RoRo traffic increased.The port says the results reflect a complex combination of factors, including adverse weather conditions…

Port Tampa Bay welcomed a container vessel Thursday that set a new record for carrying capacity at the port. The ZIM Canada docked with 11,900 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), nearly 2,000 more than any vessel previously handled at the port. The arrival underscores the port’s growing role in handling larger, high-capacity container ships and highlights the importance of ongoing infrastructure investments.The ship, stretching 1,083 feet and measuring 158 feet wide, carries enough containers that…

Home to one of the world’s busiest transshipment hubs, Singapore is stepping up to shield its maritime sector from wildlife traffickers, with a targeted guide to help industry members spot and stop those exploiting shipping systems.The Red Flag Indicators for Wildlife Trafficking in Containerised Sea Cargo: A Summary Compendium and Guidance for the Maritime Shipping Sector in Singapore makes Singapore the first in Asia to have tailored the 2021 global version of the guide to its needs.Developed by the TRAFFIC Southeast Asia…

Two Chinese container ships turned backed after trying to exit the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, ship-tracking data showed, despite assurances from Iran that Chinese vessels could pass.The operator, China's COSCO, had said in a March 25 client advisory that it had resumed bookings for general cargo containers for shipments from Asia to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Iraq.The CSCL Indian Ocean and CSCL Arctic Ocean, both Hong Kong flagged, have been stuck in the Gulf since the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran began on Feb.

BIMCO has released its Container Shipping Market Overview & Outlook March 2026 saying the Iran war amplifies outlook uncertainty."Following the start of attacks on Iran on 28 February, transits through the Strait of Hormuz have effectively stopped, severing Persian Gulf ports from global container services. As a result, around 130 container ships, totalling about 1.5% of the global fleet’s capacity, are stranded in the gulf. The war has added uncertainty to an outlook that was already obscured by ever changing US tariffs…

Hapag-Lloyd has published its annual report for the 2025 fiscal year, announcing that the group EBITDA stood at $3.6 billion (EUR 3.2 billion) and profits at $1.0 billion (EUR 0.9 billion).The result was at the upper end of the earnings forecast, but below the previous year, particularly owing to lower freight rates and higher operational costs.“2025 was a good year for Hapag-Lloyd with solid results. We have grown our volumes and outperformed the market. Our Gemini network delivered 90% schedule reliability and customer satisfaction reached another record high.

CMA CGM is making Neoline's wind-powered vessel Neoliner Origin directly accessible to its customers.The company says this low-carbon solution will strengthen its service offering between France and North America.Customers will now be able to use direct round-trip connections from Montoir (France) to Baltimore (US) and Halifax (Canada).The Neoliner Origin’s innovative propulsion system offers an environmentally friendly solution, significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80%-90% during ocean crossings.The new service is designed to accommodate a variety of commodities…

Ship-refuelling companies along Africa's coast are seeing a surge in business as more vessels divert around the Cape of Good Hope, with war in the Middle East reshaping global shipping routes and boosting the continent's role as a bunkering hub.Carriers have been avoiding the Suez Canal and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait since late 2023, when Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping began. U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have reinforced the shift,…

The Port of Oakland processed 163,254 TEUs in February 2026, a 16.7% decline from January and a 14.5% decrease year over year, as vessel activity slowed due in part to observation of the Lunar New Year.Vessel calls declined from 86 in January to 72 in February, due partially to planned blank sailings tied to factory closures during Lunar New Year. Blank sailings are pre-scheduled vessel cancellations used by carriers to align capacity with demand.Despite fewer ship arrivals, export volumes remained a bright spot.

Accelleron and HD HMS (HD Hyundai Marine Solution) have conducted Engine Part Load Optimization (EPLO) projects on two vessels owned by leading container line Hapag-Lloyd. The 14,000TEU Basle Express and Essen Express had main engine tunings and turbocharger components modified for lower engine loads, with sea trials and subsequent operations showing fuel savings of more than 10g/kWh, equivalent to 5% of overall consumption in specific load ranges.Accelleron and HMS’s EPLO product ensures that vessels operating at engine speeds lower than their original design…

The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) reports that February 2026 total container volume (international and domestic) reached 207,725 TEUs, down 19.4% compared to February 2025, when shippers were frontloading cargo ahead of expected tariffs.While full imports decreased 29.5%, full exports were up 4.9%. YTD volumes at 435,890 TEUs are down 16.6%, with full imports declining 22.6% and full exports increasing 2.2%.Alongside terminal operator partner SSA Terminals, the NWSA has celebrated…

Ports of Indiana has opened its first international trade office in Ireland to grow cargo shipments and support the launch of a direct Europe-Indiana container service. Maritime trade veteran, Brian Dooley, will lead the new European Trade Office, based in Cork and Kildare, Ireland.In 2024, Ireland made $32.4 billion of shipments to Indiana, according to the World Institute for Strategic Economic Research, more than triple any other country’s total. However, most of these shipments…

MacGregor has launched its new Balanced Lashing System, a solution designed to solve the long-standing industry challenge of uneven load distribution in container ship lashings.On conventional container ships, lashings often share loads unevenly, with upper lashings bearing the majority of the stress while lower lashings operate at only about half of their safe capacity. The Balanced Lashing System changes this dynamic by using proven elastic elements, materials used successfully for decades in hatch cover bearing pads…

Despite increasing trade policy uncertainty and falling freight rates, the container ship order book has continued to expand. It now totals more than 1,350 ships with a combined capacity of 11.8m TEU, says Niels Rasmussen, Chief Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.In 2025, global average container freight rates fell an estimated 13% year-on-year while US import tariff increases raised concerns about increasing trade protectionism. Despite this, global container volumes grew 4.7% year-on-year…

French shipping company CMA CGM expects first-quarter volumes growth of around 4.5%, despite major disruption to the global transport industry due to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran."Growth in CMA CGM's volumes in the first quarter should be around 4.5 percent.