THE global idle containership fleet has risen over the last two-week period to the end of August 2012 to 260 vessels of more than 500-TEU capacity to total 546,000 TEU.
Non-operating owner's (NOO) share of the idle fleet has reached a record high of 83 per cent (in capacity terms) as carriers have continued to redeliver surplus chartered ships, reports Alphaliner.
"Re-deliveries have outpaced new fixtures since June, with the trend expected to last until spring," said the Paris-based consultancy.
What' s more, the idle containership fleet is anticipated to continue rising until the end of the year due to a number of carriers planning to remove significant capacity on Far East-Europe trade lanes over the winter season, starting from October.
The idle fleet is forecast to swell to between 700,000 and 900,00 TEU by the end of the year, "with the severity dependent on the extent of the capacity cutbacks to be implemented by carriers in the coming months", the report said. It highlighted that the size of the charter-free NOO fleet is expected to remain high over the next three months owing to weak demand forecast.