Total liftings for the eight carriers reached 103.6 mln TEU in 2021
Loaded volumes for COSCO fell below those of Maersk Line in the final quarter of 2021 after liftings for the Asian carrier declined 13% year-on-year. Maersk once again moved ahead of its rival after posting a much more modest fall in liftings over the same period, at 4%, Alphaliner said.
The two carriers have vied for the position of the most liftings (excluding MSC which does not publish figures) since mid 2018 when COSCO acquired OOCL. The Chinese group exceeded Maersk’s loaded volumes for six consecutive quarters starting in Q2 2020.
The difference remains marginal, however, with just 60,000 teu separating the two companies in the final three months of 2021. Overall, the eight carriers posted loaded volumes of 25.4 mln TEU in the October-December 2021 quarter, equivalent to an 8% decline year-on-year.
Total liftings for the eight carriers reached 103.6 mln TEU in 2021, versus 100.8 mln TEU in 2020 when first-half volumes were severely impacted by COVID. This is slightly above the 102.9 mln TEU recorded for 2019, the last period unaffected by the virus.