The container shipping industry remains fragmented with the top five carriers accounting for less than half the global market. In this latest white paper, Drewry Maritime Advisors explore what scope there may be for further consolidation and provide pointers to operators who may be weighing-up the merits and risks of such a course of action.
Until only recently the industry had experienced a 10-year lull in M&A activity after a flurry of takeovers in the early 2000s. In the past 12 months, however, four major deals have taken place involving several major shipping lines which have led people to question whether this presages a new trend of industry consolidation. As rates plumb new depths the financial pressure on industry players, and in particular weaker carriers, is intensifying.
Whilst there are clear benefits for the industry, consolidation as a strategy for individual shipping lines provide no guarantees of commercial success and shareholder return as much depends on how effectively the integration is managed.
As well as providing contextual market analysis, this latest Drewry paper explores the various ‘routes’ to scale, achieve competitive advantage or even survive the market turmoil and identifies several key learnings for any shipping line considering as part of their strategy, merging with another carrier.
Explore more by reading Drewry’s study
Source: Drewry
