Wan Hai Lines expects another good year for the container shipping industry, after the Taiwanese carrier’s 2020 net profit rose nearly fourfold amid tight capacity.
[s2If is_user_logged_in()]Speaking at the company’s annual investor conference on 23 March, Wan Hai spokesperson Laura Su said resolving the current supply chain bottleneck depends on how far Covid-19 vaccinations have been administered. She added that various ports, especially on the US West Coast, remain congested while US retail inventories remain low.
“Shipping demand is still there. We have doubled our Transpacific capacity in the middle of this month, and the signing of long-term shipping contracts has been smooth,” said Su.
Looking forward to 2021, Su said that Wan Hai will not only be ordering more containers, but will also purchase several new and second-hand ships.
In January, the company commissioned a dozen 3,013TEU newbuildings from Japan Marine United Corporation and Nihon Shipyard, for delivery between 2022 and 2023, followed by nine 13,000TEU newbuildings commissioned at Hyundai Heavy Industries in March, for delivery in 2023.
Since earmarking US$360 million to acquire second-hand ships in December 2020, Wan Hai has purchased 11 such vessels.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
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