Posted on September 22, 2025
The Premier Alliance has separated its transatlantic MS2 service into two loops, one Asia-Mediterranean (MD2) and the other, a Middle East-US lane (GS2), to enable ONE to redeploy 10 Chinese-built ships ahead of the October implementation of hefty US port fees on such vessels.
Up to 21 ships of 13,000-15,000 teu were assigned to the former MS2 service, including the aforementioned 10 ships from ONE. Those China-built ships have been reassigned to the MD2 and bypass the US altogether.
The MD2 service, which commenced on Thursday, has a port rotation of Busan-Shanghai-Ningbo-Kaohsiung-Shekou-Singapore-Tanger Med-Valencia-Barcelona-Genoa-Fos-Singapore-Busan.
It will turn in 15 weeks, starting with the 10,000 teu Hyundai Marsdeparting Busan.
The GS2 service will call Singapore-Laem Chabang-Cai Mep-Shanghai-Busan-Long Beach-Oakland-Busan-Dalian-Xingang-Qingdao-Busan-Shanghai-Ningbo-Kaohsiung-Shekou-Singapore-Jebel Ali-Dammam-Jubail-Hamad-Abu Dhabi-Jebel Ali-Sohar-Singapore.
It will turn in 16 weeks and launched with the departure of the 14,220 teu YM Wonderland from Singapore on 4 September.
According to Drewry, between May and August, the number of China-built vessels on the Asia-US west coast route fell by 19% to 102 vessels.
The decline was similar on the Asia-US East Coast trade, where 33 China-built vessels are active, amounting to a 20% drop.
On the transatlantic, the reduction is 6%, to 44 China-built ships.
However, according to liner consultancy Sea-Intelligence, the overall proportion of Chinese vessels on these three key trades into the US remains higher than many may expect.
“Despite much talk, and recent headlines about carrier redeployment, the data presently do not support this on the Transatlantic at all, and only somewhat so on the Transpacific.
“This does not mean it is not happening – clearly, individual vessel redeployments can indeed be found.
“But it is not at this point happening at a point where is has a material statistical impact, and certainly not on the Transatlantic,” Sea-Intelligence analysts wrote yesterday.
According to Sea-Intelligence, during the first half of this year, China-built container ships represented 25%-30% of all vessels on the Asia-US west coast trade, which has now fallen to 20%-25% after the analyst counted the number of named vessels on carrier proforma schedules up to November – at least a fortnight after the USTR port fees are due to be implemented.
On the Asia-US east coast trade, the proportion of Chinese built vessels has fallen from around 15% to 10% up to November, indicating a “reduction in the deployment of Chinese built vessels.
“However, it is also clear that the tangible effect, for now, is not overly pronounced,” Sea-Intelligence noted, adding that on the two transatlantic trades – North Europe-North America and Mediterranean-North America – it had yet to see “a meaningful reduction of the usage of Chinese-built vessels”.
Meanwhile, it remains to be seen how Cosco Shipping Lines, which has vowed to defend its transpacific sailings, will react, as it has the highest proportion of China-built ships in its fleet.
Its Ocean Alliance partner, CMA CGM, has said it will not make shippers pay surcharges to cover the fees, which could be as much as $1.5m per call, as the carrier can redeploy its fleet.
About 30% of the French line’s transatlantic and transpacific tonnage is China-built.
