Container Rates Stall as Capacity Glut Offsets Hormuz Shock
Container spot freight rates on the main east-west trades largely flatlined this week as excess capacity and uneven demand failed to further spur recent pricing increases by carriers.
(c) REUTERS/Michael Kooren
Amid throngs of shoreside and seagoing spectators, the world’s largest containership, MV Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller, arrived today in Rotterdam on her maiden voyage from Asia to Europe.
The vessel was built at South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) at a cost of $185 million.
In May, gCaptain’s John Konrad visited the shipyard and was given a tour of the 400-meter vessel while the yard was putting on the finishing touches. Click here for images from his trip: Mærsk McKinney-Møller– Meet The World’s Largest Ship! [Multimedia Gallery]
The vessel was officially named on June 14th during a ceremony at DSME.
Maersk plans to incorporate up to twenty of these giant vessels over the next few years as a means to lower their cost per teu, as well as reduce their overall carbon footprint.

Updated: February 27, 2014 (Originally published August 16, 2013)
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