The world’s largest container line has decided to withdraw its largest vessels from the Asia–North Europe route in what appears to be a strategic realignment of its services.
According to Alphaliner, Mediterranean Shipping Company’s 19 200- to 24 300-TEU megamax ships will be redeployed to the Asia–Mediterranean and Asia–West Africa trades, with ships averaging around 14 700 TEUs now servicing the Asia–North Europe corridor.
The move comes shortly after MSC’s departure from the 2M Alliance with Maersk, marking the first month the carrier has operated independently on major east-west trades.
Analysts suggest that the decision to reduce vessel sizes on the Asia–North Europe route is likely an effort to manage capacity and stabilise declining freight rates.
Latest figures from the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) show Shanghai–North Europe spot rates at $1 578 per TEU as of last week, reflecting a 44% drop over the first seven weeks of the year.
By comparison, rates on the shorter Shanghai–West Africa trade are significantly stronger, averaging around $4 000 per TEU. This disparity suggests MSC is repositioning its assets to take advantage of higher-yielding routes.
Market analysts note that the rate decline on Asia–North Europe services has been more pronounced and accelerated than typical seasonal patterns, while Asia-Mediterranean trades have followed more conventional trends. With demand on the North Europe leg lagging, reducing capacity could ease downward pressure on spot rates.
MSC’s shift in vessel deployment also comes amid broader market concerns over excess capacity and weaker-than-expected cargo demand across key European ports.
Deploying smaller vessels on the Asia–North Europe rotation may enhance schedule flexibility and improve operational efficiency, while redeploying larger tonnage to trades with more robust rate environments could help optimise revenue.
