China International Marine Containers (CIMC), the globe's leading container producer, has announced a fivefold increase in production in the first three quarters of the year due to a resurgence in demand triggered by the Red Sea crisis.
With an output of 2,490,000 units, which includes 93,400 reefers showing a 17% increase, revenue saw a 36% year-over-year growth, reaching CNY128.97bn ($18.37bn), while net profit nearly doubled to CNY2.73bn ($388.35m).
CIMC stated: "During the initial three quarters, there was a rebound in global container trade demand. Clarksons has recently projected a significant increase in global container trade, from 0.7% in 2023 to 5.2% in 2024, with expectations that this growth will persist, increasing by 2.8% in 2025.
"To mitigate the risk of container shortages due to the ongoing Red Sea crisis, port strikes, and other unpredictable events, customers are increasingly inclined to order new containers.
“Despite ongoing risks and challenges, the trend of sustained growth in trade volume is anticipated to continue. Concurrently, international inflation has eased, and the US Federal Reserve's interest rate reduction has prompted many central banks globally to follow, stimulating a revival in consumer spending.”
Drewry predicts that 2024 will mark the second-highest year on record for dry freight container production, propelled by record output in Q2 24. In July alone, over 850,000 TEU were shipped by Chinese manufacturers, who report being fully engaged until the current month.
Securing containers in the required quantities at the necessary locations has become increasingly challenging due to robust exports from Asia, congestion at transshipment ports, and a decline in container turnover rates, exacerbated by extended sailing times as a result of the Red Sea crisis, which has forced ships to navigate around the Cape of Good Hope.
Especially, the availability of 40ft containers, the industry's mainstay, has become more constrained, with a higher demand to transport the same volume of cargo. In the first seven months of the year, 1.4m were delivered, compared to only 125,000 in the corresponding period of 2023, reflecting a tenfold increase.