新造船集中投向亚洲-拉美航线，运量激增

Photo: Zhoushan Changhong International Shipyard

By Alison Koo

30 October 2026

Deliveries in the past week have been primarily deployed to services between the Far East and Latin America, highlighting growing volumes on these trades.

Alphaliner noted that Imabari Shipbuilding completed the 13,932 teu ONE Symphony that will be deployed on ONE’s Asia-WCSA AX3 service the pan-Japanese carrier runs jointly with MSC and Hapag-Lloyd.

This is the 14th in a series of at least 15 vessels that various Imabari Group yards are building for ONE. Symphony will sail to Qingdao to commence operations.

MSC took delivery of the 10,300 teu MSC Licia X from Zhoushan Changhong International Shipyard, and will assign the ship to its solo Far East-East Coast of South America Carioca loop that deploys a fleet of 15 ships of between 8,000 and 12,000 teu capacity.

The new dual-fuel vessel is the sixth in a series of ten the yard is scheduled to deliver to MSC this year and next.

MSC ordered the series in August 2023 for around $130m per unit. Zhoushan Changhong delivered the MSC Licia X 11 months ahead of schedule, illustrating the improving techniques of Chinese shipbuilding.

Another Chinese firm New Times Shipbuilding, delivered the 8,454 teu CMA CGM Austral to Eastern Pacific Shipping. The ship is the last of four sisters New Times built for the Singapore-based non-operating shipowner. All four vessels are committed to long-term charters to CMA CGM, and CMA CGM Austral will serve the French line’s Far East-Mexico M2X service.

Finally, George Economou’s TMS Group took delivery of the 7,900 teu Garnet from South Korea’s HJ Shipbuilding & Construction. This is the second of four sisters commissioned in 2024 for $108m each, all for long-term charter to Zim.

The Garnet will be assigned to the newly launched Far East-east coast South America ZFS service Zim runs with Hapag-Lloyd, part of a sustained shake-up of vessel sharing agreements on the Asia-South America trades, and features a port rotation of Shanghai-Ningbo-Xiamen-Hong Kong-Yantian-Rio Grande-Paranagua-Itajai-Santos-Rio de Janeiro.

It turns in 77 days and will eventually deploy a fleet of 11 ships. So far, ZFS is served by vessels in the size range from 5,500 to 9,000 teu, with both carriers acting as vessel providers.

Trade between China and South America has been growing in the past three years, with Container Trade Statistics registering 4% year-on-year growth, to 563,407 teu, in August.

China exports machinery, electrical equipment, telecoms infrastructure, and electronics to South America, while importing vital agricultural and mining products.