Recently, the global shipping market has received encouraging news. Driven by multiple factors, demand for container ship capacity has grown significantly, with an annual increase of 12%, a figure that fully reflects the shipping industry is experiencing a strong recovery.
According to the latest report of the authoritative organization, this year's surge in demand for the container shipping segment was mainly affected by geopolitical instability and route adjustments. Ongoing conflicts in the Red Sea region have led to frequent attacks on merchant ships, forcing a large number of vessels to choose to sail around the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, thus significantly increasing the demand for container ship transportation. This change not only boosted the overall tonne-nautical mile demand of the shipping industry by about 3%, but also generated a significant increase of up to 12% in the container shipping segment.
Vessel transit through the Suez Canal, a major hub for international shipping, has fallen sharply in the wake of this year's onslaught. Compared to last year's average, ship transits through the Suez Canal fell by around 701 TP3T. Cruise ships, car carriers and LNG carriers all saw their transits fall by around 91 TP3T, while bulk carriers and tankers saw their transits drop by an even more significant 40-501 TP3T. this change has forced most global consolidators to re-route their routes to avoid the Red Sea region, a trend that is expected to continue until 2025.
Meanwhile, the Panama Canal, another important shipping route, has experienced similar challenges and recovery. As a result of low water levels last year, ship transit through the Panama Canal was significantly limited. However, as the Canal's management took proactive measures to improve water resource management, the Canal's transit restrictions were gradually eased, and the volume of traffic improved significantly by the end of the year. In the most recent week, ship transit through the Panama Canal reached 10.3 million gross tons, close to last year's average and up 351 TP3T from the low point at the beginning of the year.
The rise in demand for container ship capacity is not only reflected in the adjustment of routes, but also supported by the shipping market data. According to the latest data from industry authorities, as of October this year, the total number of container ships in operation around the world has increased to 7,126, with a total capacity of 309,100,422 TEUs, and ship tonnage deadweight also climbed to 366,562,895 tons. This growth reflects the activity of the market and the continued demand for shipping capacity.
In terms of liner shipping companies, the market performance is equally strong. Authoritative shipping index shows that the first three quarters of this year, the market is hot, the average value of 25,539 U.S. dollars / day, an increase of 11%, and higher than the average value of the past 10 years, 43%. into the fourth quarter, the market continues to maintain the momentum of the collection of transportation, the liner companies have to announce a price increase, and adjust the layout of the route in order to cope with the market demand.
Market experts pointed out that the rise in demand for container ship capacity is mainly due to the rebound in the global economy and international trade. In the first three quarters of this year, the total import and export value of China's trade in goods reached 32.33 trillion yuan, up 5.31 TP3T year-on-year, providing strong support for the shipping market. In addition, technology exports from Asia (especially green energy and AI-related products) and growing global demand for commodities such as iron ore, coal and grains further contributed to the shipping market boom.
However, the shipping market is also facing a number of challenges. Global macroeconomic policy uncertainties, escalating trade tensions, increasing tariff barriers and heightened upside risks to inflation may all have some impact on the market. In the future, as the global economy continues to improve steadily, the shipping market will need to remain cautiously optimistic and strive to meet the challenge of balancing supply and demand.
The rise in demand for container ship capacity this year not only highlights the strong recovery of the shipping industry, but also lays a solid foundation for future market development. As global trade and supply chains continue to recover and adjust, the shipping market will continue to maintain its important position as the lifeblood of the global economy.
Author: Diligence
Company Name: Xindashun International Logistics (Shenzhen) Co.
Tel：13556688899
Address: 21B03, Jazz Building, No. 4018, Guinbin Road, Heping Community, Nanhu Street, Luohu District, Shenzhen, China.