The 12 largest container shipping companies in the world [Table]

For 12,500 Teu, Maersk maintained its lead, in 2021, as the world’s largest shipping company, taking the lead from MSC, which remains in the second place, but not for long, according to Alphaliner.

According to the analysis company, 2021 was a year when the market index of container vessels broke the barrier of 5,000 units, for the first time in its history, closing on December 31, 2021 at 5,047 units, when on December 21, 2020 it was at 2,783 units, capturing the strong upward movement of the containerships and high fares. These fares are the main reason why liner shipping companies earned high profit margins in 2021, surpassing all previous records.

Comparing the picture of the fleet of the 12 largest companies in this very interesting year, Alphaliner points out that MSC is among the companies that stood out in 2021, as it increased its fleet in Teu by 10.7%. As a result of this expansion, only 2,500 Teu is left behind by the first shipping company, Maersk.

MSC is going to take the lead from the danish shipping giant, Maersk, within the first quarter of 2022, as soon as all the expansion moves of the Italian-Swiss company of the Aponte Family are formally completed.

However, there were other shipping companies among the 12 largest that increased their fleet, as shown in the table below by Alphaliner, while three of them lost some carrying capacity (Cosco, ONE and PIL).