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This
year could end up as one of the
worst in the history of container
shipping, according to Drewry
Shipping Consultants.
Both
freight rates and charter rates look
set to fall further after record
newbuilding deliveries in 2001 and
more in the pipeline, the firm warns
in its latest quarterly review of
the liner markets.
The
main beneficiary of the slump will
be the shipbreakers, with Drewry
forecasting a considerable increase
in containership scrapping.
Demolition
is likely to exceed 90,000 TEUs this
year and next, compared with scrap
sales of 30,000 TEUs in 2001 and
just 18,000 TEUs in 2000.
Carriers
are retrenching through tonnage
set-aside programmes, while tramp
owners are considering ways of
co-operating on vessel lay-ups.
While
2000 was the high point for
container shipping, the full extent
of the collapse in 2001 only became
apparent towards the end of the
year, says Drewry.
With
freight rates down, overcapacity
increasing, and political and
economic uncertainty to the fore,
especially since September 11,
“profitability in the liner
shipping industry has
collapsed.”
A
sustained recovery looks unlikely
before mid-2003, Drewry warns.
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