SWISS-ITALIAN Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) has launched its first Asia-Europe sea-rail service via Russia while its 2M alliance partner Maersk has expanded its similar intermodal offering, reports IHS Media.
Despite covering the same areas with similar transit times, Maersk said the services by the two carriers were being offered independently and not under their 2M Alliance.
The carriers - the world's biggest container carriers have added these services to capture strong demand from shippers forced out of the air and ocean market.
Chiefly targeting forwarders that in the past few months have launched a host of new China-Europe rail offerings as strong demand fills all available air and ocean capacity out of Asia, that have sent rates soaring.
Maersk said it was expanding its AE19 service, launched in July 2019, which offers intermodal ocean-rail connections linking Japan and South Korea with Europe via Russia's trans-Siberian rail route. Also on Monday, MSC launched its first sea-rail service on the North Asia-Russia-North Europe route.
MSC said in a statement the new sea-air service will use the carrier's feeder network in Asia to link ports in China, Japan and South Korea with the Russian Far East ports of Vostochniy and Vladivostok.
At the Russian ports, containers will be loaded on trains and carried to St Petersburg, where MSC feeders will transport the boxes to European hubs, such as Bremerhaven, Antwerp, Rotterdam and Le Havre.
SeaNews Turkey
Despite covering the same areas with similar transit times, Maersk said the services by the two carriers were being offered independently and not under their 2M Alliance.
The carriers - the world's biggest container carriers have added these services to capture strong demand from shippers forced out of the air and ocean market.
Chiefly targeting forwarders that in the past few months have launched a host of new China-Europe rail offerings as strong demand fills all available air and ocean capacity out of Asia, that have sent rates soaring.
Maersk said it was expanding its AE19 service, launched in July 2019, which offers intermodal ocean-rail connections linking Japan and South Korea with Europe via Russia's trans-Siberian rail route. Also on Monday, MSC launched its first sea-rail service on the North Asia-Russia-North Europe route.
MSC said in a statement the new sea-air service will use the carrier's feeder network in Asia to link ports in China, Japan and South Korea with the Russian Far East ports of Vostochniy and Vladivostok.
At the Russian ports, containers will be loaded on trains and carried to St Petersburg, where MSC feeders will transport the boxes to European hubs, such as Bremerhaven, Antwerp, Rotterdam and Le Havre.
SeaNews Turkey