b'APRIL 17 - MAY 14, 2023OCEAN CARRIER REVIEW 13(NUMBERScontinuedtoU.S.portsincreased16%showing no new ship orders). from page 6) between 2019 and 2022(SeeMSC,asexpectedhasthe with recent declining volumesFig A). The overall gains weremost with 42 ships of nearly reducingporttransitdelaystemperedby2022syear-on- 1.75millionTEUs.CMA-below 10 daysa significantyear retreat of 8%, the resultCGMandCOSCOhave improvement compared withofwidespreadlockdownsofover91shipsand45ships 15+dayslastyear,butstillentire cities and regions as partrespectively,onorder,both way off the low single digitsof government efforts to bringwithover800,000TEUs. ofthepre-pandemicyearsof high inflation and worriesthepoint,VietnamsexportsCOVID under control. Extrap- AndONEhas451shipsof observers might have specu- aboutthefutureoutlookofto the U.S. between 2019 andolatingfromthe2023firstover 570,000 TEUs on order lated that business would ebbtheeconomy.Extrapolating2022 jumped almost 60% toquarternumbers,itislikelyandEvergreenhas49ships backintoWestCoastports.fromthe2023firstquarter2.3 million TEUS mainly onthatvolumeswillbelowerofover463,000TEUs.The Latestfigures,however,tellnumbers,containervolumesshipmentsofelectricalandthanfor2022,inlinewithorderbook is around 7.1 mil-adifferentstory.Shareofappeartobetrendinglowerelectronicequipment,furni- reduced consumer purchases. lionTEUsatthemoment, container volume for the topcompared with 2022. ture, and apparel items. Otheralthough delivery delays and five East and Gulf Coast portsTherobustgrowthratebeneficiaries of the shift awayoutrightcancellationsare rose 1.6% to 46.8% in Febru- from2019isdrivenbythefromChinaincludedIndia,(POINTcontinued frompossible.Manyofthenew ary 2023, compared with theshift away from China, whoseThailand,Indonesia,Malay- page 10) ships are over 23,000 TEUs month before. In contrast, theimageasthemanufacturingsia, and Pakistan. the obvious question for the a testament to the sugges-figureforthetopfiveWestassembly hub of the world wasAlso,inlinewiththeothercarriersisifthetwotivepowersofeconomies Coast ports retreated 2.8% todented with previous adminis- macro trend, shippers shiftedbiggestplayersaresplit- ofscale.Currentlythere 36%. Its a case of once bittentration era duty and tariff hikestradelanesawayfromthetingupmaybeweshouldare roughly 6,000 container-twice shy. The memory of thewith other more recent factorsWestCoastandinfavorofconsiderdoingthesame?shipsactiveofaround26.7 harshoperatingconditionsbeing the large scale COVIDEastCoastandGulfCoastJensen in an AJOT article bymillion TEUs. So, the ques-last year is still fresh in every- lockdowns that halted indus- ports(SeeFig2)initiallyStas Margaronis (SeeAJOT. tioniswhywouldcarriers onesminds.Shippersandtrial production for months atbecausecontainerconges- com Mar 8, 2023, Are MSC &addsomuchtonnagewhile theirtransportationpartnersa time and rising Asia-Pacifiction affected the West CoastCOSCO Poised To Be Oceanfreight rates are scraping the are likely to continue to walkRim tensions. U.S. manufac- more and latterly because ofCarrier Growth Leaders?) sug- seafloor? A partial answer is a cautious line until the ILWUturersperceptionofChinafearsofworkstoppagesifgestedthattherewouldbeorderingoftenrunscounter-negotiations are settled. beinganattractivebusinesstheILWUcontractnegotia- changes to the existing alliancecyclical and there is always a AJOTIntermsofenvironmentisfadingandtions turned contentious. structuredowntheroad.So,competitive element in keep-sourcing, how much trade inthey are hedging their invest- AJOTHow Have Chi- when asked what he expecteding up with the other carriers terms of TEUs has moved toment bets by setting up shop innas(HongKongincluded)withtheOceanAlliance, and often to have similar Southeast Asia and South Asiaplaces like Southeast Asia andTEUexportstoUSportsJensen explained: In relationships to use in VSA rotations. totheUSsince2019?HowSouth Asia where the operat- fared since 2019?to Ocean Alliance, COSCO hasAnd owners are also trying to have the routes and gatewaysingclimateismorepredict- ChrisJonesChinalostsignificantmarketsharekeep ahead of the tighter envi-changed with the sourcing?able and stable. To hit home(including Hong Kong) exportsduring COVID and I would expectronmental regulatory regimes. ChrisJonesSouth- them to ramp up their efforts toWhichbringsthereal eastAsiaandSouthAsiaregain this as well as grow fur- question to the fore. Are con-TEUtrafficintotheU.S.ther - they have the 2nd largesttainershipoperatorsnearing increased 43% between 2019orderbookafterMSC.aninflectionpoint?With and2022,from4.4millionThiswouldleadtocom- newenvironmentalrequire-to6.3millioncontainers.mercialpressureonthements impacting ship design However, last years year-on- business partners.(a wide variety of new fuels yeargrowthslowedtojustOf course, none of this issuch as LNG, methanol and 3% after two years of doublehappening in isolation. Thereammoniarequiringnew digit rates of expansion. (Seehasbeen,asJensenalludedpower plants), is the alliance Fig 1). This is in line with theto, a massive amount of con- structurepotentiallyready importvolumedeclinesattainerorderingdonelargelytoshiftandnewbusiness the overall macro level asso- by the top ten container shipmodels emergingMaersk ciatedwithadropinU.S.operators(excludingYangthe first ocean integrator?consumerspendingbecauseMing which at the moment isthe answer might be Yes.'