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WESTBOUND
Mediterranean-North America container traffic
in May climbed up to 105,000 TEU, slightly
up from April's 103,000 TEU, but not enough
to top March's total of 111,000 TEU, according
to Drewry, the London shipping consultants.
Within
the May total, 78,000 TEU was transported
to the US, driven by the traditional demand
for goods from Southern Europe, followed
by 15,000 TEU to Canada, and Mexican volumes
accounted for 11,000 TEU.
With
regard to efforts made by shipping lines
to reign in excess capacity, the analysts
said such attempts were moderately successful
in May. Overall trade capacity grew by 3.9
per cent in May, down from April's increase
of 5.6 per cent.
However,
overall capacity fell by a marginal 0.6
per cent in June to 148,057 TEU. "The
expectation is that carriers will continue
to try to limit capacity, although this
might change depending on the nature of
vessel cascading off the main Asia-Europe
trades," Drewry said.
According
to a report by Drewry Maritime Research,
westbound volumes are said to be picking
up, particularly out of the eastern Mediterranean
with Turkey leading the way.
The
value of Turkey's exports of apparel to
the US in May grew 22 per cent compared
to the same month in 2012 to reach US$5.6
billion, an increase of over $1 billion
in the space of a year, according to data
released by the Istanbul Textile and Apparel
Exporter Association. The organisation said
exports in the first six months of 2013
rose in value terms by 6.6 per cent year
on year.
The
report attributed this growth to the continuing
weakness of the Turkish Liram, which continues
to give the country's exporters a competitive
edge.
Adding
to capacity on the trade lane was the June
introduction of the Mediterranean-US East
Coast (MAS) service by Hapag-Lloyd, which
connects New York, Norfolk and Savannah
to the main ports in Italy, France and Spain.
On
the eastbound North America-Mediterranean
trade, Hapag Lloyd and its partner Hamburg
Sud are adding a port call at Salerno, Italy
to their Mediterranean-Gulf (MGX) service,
from which Savannah was dropped with the
launch of the MAS service.
Analysts
fear that the market would be "unsettled"
if the G6 alliance shipping lines decide
at some point to enter the market using
their Asia-East Coast North America (via
Suez) loops.
Total
volumes in May amounted to 86,000 TEU, slightly
higher than April's 84,000 TEU.
The
report added that eastbound capacity was
almost identical to the westbound leg and
showed a similar slight decline, which may
raise optimism that announced freight rate
hikes due to be implemented at the beginning
of August may stick.
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