The world’s largest container shipping line, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), has decided to withdraw its largest vessels from the Asia-North Europe route in a move that appears to be a strategic realignment of its services.
According to Alphaliner, MSC’s megamax vessels, ranging from 19,200 to 24,300 TEUs, will be redeployed to the Asia-Mediterranean and Asia-West Africa trades.
Meanwhile, ships averaging around 14,700 TEUs will now service the Asia-North Europe corridor. This decision follows MSC’s exit from the 2M Alliance with Maersk, marking the first month MSC has operated independently on major east-west trade routes.
Analysts suggest the reduction in vessel sizes on the Asia-North Europe route is a strategy to manage excess capacity and stabilize the decline in freight rates.
Recent figures from the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) indicate that Shanghai-North Europe spot rates stood at $1,578 per TEU last week, reflecting a 44% drop over the first seven weeks of the year.
In contrast, rates on the shorter Shanghai-West Africa route are considerably higher, averaging around $4,000 per TEU. This disparity indicates that MSC is repositioning its assets to capitalize on more lucrative routes.
Market analysts highlight that the rate decline on the Asia-North Europe route has been more pronounced and accelerated than usual seasonal variations. Conversely, Asia-Mediterranean trades have followed more typical patterns.
With demand on the North Europe leg lagging, reducing capacity may help alleviate downward pressure on spot rates.
MSC’s decision to shift vessel deployment also coincides with broader concerns in the market over excess capacity and weaker-than-expected cargo demand across key European ports.
By deploying smaller vessels on the Asia-North Europe rotation, MSC aims to enhance schedule flexibility and improve operational efficiency.
At the same time, redeploying larger vessels to more robust trade routes could help optimize revenue in a challenging market.
