As shipping companies' second-quarter earnings season comes to an end, a survey by shipping consulting firm Alphaliner this week showed that the profit growth and fleet capacity of 's leading large shipping companies far exceed other shipping companies in the same industry.
In addition, the agency also pointed out that a "two-tier market" may be forming between shipping companies focusing on contracts and shipping companies that use the spot market to increase value.
Currently, the world's number one MSC has a fleet capacity of 4.48 million TEU, while the 20th SM Line has a total capacity of 93,410 TEU, with the gap between this 4.38 million TEU. In 2017, Maersk ranked first in capacity, with a capacity gap of 3.2 million TEU between it and the 20th shipping company.
These data show that with the soaring revenue in the past two years, large shipping companies have expanded their fleet size. The latest data shows that the total capacity of shipping companies in ranked in the top 10 is 21.8 million TEU, while the total capacity of the 20 shipping companies ranked 11th to 30th is only 2.5 million TEU.
Alphaliner said: "With the widespread integration/acquisition of the top shipping companies, it has attracted the attention of politicians and regulators. There is a huge gap between the leading shipping companies and other shipping companies in the industry." Data from
Alphaliner also shows that during the epidemic, the revenue growth rate of larger shipping companies is also higher. Between 2019 and 2021, the top 10 shipping companies in increased profits by 1000% to nearly 6000%, while other shipping companies increased revenue by 100% to 700%.
Source: MSC
In addition, the Global Shipping Alliance is also facing scrutiny. The three major shipping alliances account for more than 90% of all container transport operations on major east-west trade routes.
Despite the differences in fleet size, Alphaliner observed that the revenue of shipping companies that provide trans-Pacific route services is significantly better than shipping companies that focus on domestic or intraregional trade routes. Since 2019, US-listed Messen Steelers and South Korea's SM Line have been the main winners in operating profit growth. SM Line operates 94% of its capacity on trans-Pacific routes, the highest proportion of the top 20 shipping companies.
Alphaliner said: "Yangming and Wanhai have become the latest two shipping companies that have seen a decline in profits and net profits in the second quarter." Both shipping companies' profits in the second quarter of this year have declined compared with the previous quarter. HMM also reported a decline for the first time after achieving profit growth for seven consecutive quarters.
Alphaliner said: "This result is in sharp contrast to Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd, Evergreen and ONE. Compared with the first three months of this year, the profits of these companies have increased in the second quarter."
In short, Alphaliner said that its findings show that "a two-tier market may be formed between shipping companies focusing on long-term contracts and shipping companies that rely more on the spot market."
Source: Alphaliner
