Changing face of the carrier Top 20

The specialist research and advisory organisation for the maritime sector, Drewry, has reported that Maersk Group CEO Nils Smedegaard Andersen, has just given “a thinly veiled warning” to smaller rivals to think about exiting the container shipping market.

In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Andersen said: “I can’t speak for other companies, but small and mid-size carriers controlling a 3% to 5% market share – with very few exceptions – have been unprofitable for the last seven years. After such a long period of not being profitable, it defies logic to continue to invest in the business.”

But with rates now at historical lows and bunker costs steadily creeping up, even a company of Maersk’s stature will feel the pinch, Drewry added.

“The comments from Andersen perhaps betray a company that knows it is in for a bumpy ride in the short-term at least,” it said. “The removal of a few pesky competitors would certainly help to lift freight rates off the floor.”

Source: Drewry