More and more ships stand idle

It’s a sign of the times. The level of idle containerships worldwide has risen to historic highs, with 675 000-TEU capacity (or 5.5% of the global fleet) now idle, according to AXSAlphaliner. This figure translates into around 255 container vessels to January 19, up from around 550 000-TEUs two weeks earlier. Of these, 148 ships are from the charter ship market. And the worst does not appear to be over as Alphaliner forecasts this figure will reach 750 000-TEUs in early February, with 6% of the global fleet standing idle.