The Europe-India trade is set to undergo significant change as the new Gemini Cooperation of Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd plus the Premier Alliance (ONE, HMM and Yang Ming) include the route on their East West networks.
Overall capacity is expected to be up 24.1% once all new loops are fully staffed and the average vessel size of the ships operated by the major carriers is set to increase from 9,833 to 11,332 teu.
The trade is still suffering from a lack of ships. Forward schedules show that nine ships are still unable to guarantee weekly sailings on all big loops. The carriers requiring additional tonnage are CMA CGM (five vessels), the members of the Premier Alliance (three) and COSCO Group (one).
Last week, Alphaliner counted 113 ships trading in dedicated liner services between Europe and India. Most of these loops also serve ports in the Middle East.
Source: Alphaliner