Four Asian shipping companies and a European company said they will cooperate to offer a global container shipping service by as early as February to expand their reach and cut costs.
Taiwan's Yang Ming Marine Transport Co (
"We all want to shorten the transit time of goods, provide more frequent services and more port coverage," Huang said. The five companies together have 324 container ships with a capacity of 804,703 20-foot equivalent units, he said.
The cooperation may help the companies in the face of slumping trade and a slowing global economy. Global container fleets will increase by as much as 12 percent this year and 11 percent in 2002, according to UBS Warburg, further depressing freight rates. Container rates for Taiwan shippers on Asian and European routes are down as much as 9 percent this year.
Yang Ming shares have slumped nearly half in the last six months, Kawasaki's Kisen shares have slid 19 percent during the same period and Hanjin Shipping's shares have dropped 17 percent.
Yang Ming's shares fell NT$0.35, or 5.4 percent, to NT$6.10 yesterday. Hanjin's stock fell 185 won, or 5.5 percent, to 3,200 won. Kawasaki Kisen rose ?13, or 8.5 percent, to reach ?166.
The companies have sent two or three of their representatives to be part of a committee that will work out shipping routes and coverage, Huang said. Each shipper will keep the revenue it earns from transporting cargo and no company has invested money into the venture.
For Yang Ming, Taiwan's No. 3 shipper by market value, the alliance further expands the cooperation it has with Cosco, China's biggest shipper, and Kawasaki Kisen, Japan's No. 3 shipper, which has existed for four years.
"We hope the alliance will give additional revenue, enabling us to use domestic and overseas terminals more efficiently," Hanjin Shipping said in a statement. "The alliance with Cosco will boost our foothold in China."
Other shippers also have alliances. Mitsui OSK joined with Hyundai Merchant Marine Co and APL Ltd. Nippon Yusen is a member of the Grand Alliance along with Hapag-Lloyd AG. P&O Nedlloyd Ltd is a joint venture of Dutch shipping company Royal Nedlloyd NV and the UK's Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co, Orient Overseas Container Line Ltd and Malaysia International Shipping Corp.
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