Maersk has decided to add a Karachi call to its FI3 service rotation aiming to provide its customers with faster connectivity between the Far East Asian markets and Pakistan.
Therefore, the Danish ocean carrier welcomed the 6,690 TEU container ship Maersk Karachi at the South Asia Pakistan Terminals (SAPT) for the first time on the recently updated FI3 service today (28 November).
According to the company’s statement, with the addition of Karachi to the rotation, Maersk brings direct coverage of the Far East markets to Pakistan’s importers and exporters with around 30% quicker transit times.
The updated FI3 service has the following rotation:
Qingdao (China) – Xingang (China) – Busan (South Korea) – Tanjung Pelepas (Malaysia) – Port Klang (Malaysia) – Jawaharlal Nehru (India) – Pipavav (India) – Karachi (Pakistan) – Mundra (India) – Colombo (Sri Lanka) – Port Klang – Singapore.
“Our commitment to Pakistan only gets stronger as we welcome our Maersk Karachi vessel here at Karachi Port today. Our ambition is to ensure that we curate solutions that enable our customers to participate in global trade in the most competitive manner,” said Hasan Faraz, managing director of Maersk Pakistan.
Karachi Port’s proximity to the consumer market, fisheries and industrial hubs will help customers to more than half their transit times compared to some of the other major ports in Pakistan, according to Maersk, which noted that as a result, the transit times are quicker on both ocean and landside transportation.
The inclusion of Karachi on the updated FI3 service is also expected to benefit imports from China for sectors associated with the automotive industry and other commercial importers. As far as exports are concerned, perishable commodities, such as seafood, citrus and vegetables, moving on reefers to the Far East will benefit from reduced transit time that will also curb food wastage, according to Maersk’s announcement.
