HMM and SM Line cooperate on trans-Pacific service amid changing alliances

A HMM container ship (Source: HMM)

On May 13, SM Line said they would each take on 300 TEUs on each other's Asia-US West Coast services, starting in June.

HMM will take slots on SM Line's CPX (China Pacific Express) service calling at Qingdao, Shanghai, Ningbo, Busan, Incheon, Gwangyang, Los Angeles, Oakland, Long Beach and Portland. CPX uses six 6,655 TEU vessels, with a turnaround time of six weeks.

SM Line will take slots on HMM's Pacific South Express (PSX) service, calling at Shanghai, Gwangyang, Busan, Los Angeles, Oakland, Busan, Gwangyang, Incheon and Shanghai. The PSX service has seven-week sailings, using six vessels with capacities ranging from 8,600 to 10,000 TEU. The seventh vessel - a new 13,800 TEU vessel - named HMM Emerald, will join the service later this month.

SM Line joins other THE Alliance members such as Hapag-Lloyd, ONE and Yang Ming Marine Transport in joining the PSX service.

The partnership between the two Korean shipping lines coincides with an upheaval in container shipping alliances.

With Hapag-Lloyd shipping line leaving THE Alliance to form the Gemini Cooperation alliance with Maersk Line in February 2025, it has become increasingly necessary for THE Alliance members to attract other shipping companies as partners.

Cooperation with SM Line shows that HMM will strengthen its sales network by actively promoting ship sharing not only with foreign shipping lines but also with fellow shipping lines.

A spokesperson for HMM told Container News that the company is always open to collaborating with other companies.

Xeneta principal analyst Peter Sand told Container News that THE Alliance members will likely increase cooperation with other container shipping lines, rather than seek to replace Hapag-Lloyd in the alliance.

“I think this will be a trend that many Alliance partners will continue to make use of going forward. No Alliance is holy. Not now, not in the future. But for THE Alliance members the need to go out and find other partners to team up with on specific trades may be more pronounced due to the size of the capacity operated under the alliance structure", said Sand.
 

See more:

• HMM sees opportunities even though Hapag-Lloyd exiting THE Alliance
• Expert: Yang Ming, HMM, and ONE Should Collaborate with MSC
• Expert: HMM shipping company should invest in doubling its fleet size
   

Source: Phaata.com (According to ContainerNews) 

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