South Korean liner companies Sinokor Merchant Marine and Heung-A Shipping have decided to merge their container shipping services by the end of the year before joining forces with Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM).
The duo will ink a corresponding agreement in April when a joint office will also be established. The integration is expected to be completed by the end of 2019, the country’s Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) said in a statement.
Sinokor and Heung-A Shipping together account for 34 percent of Asia’s total fleet capacity excluding HMM and SM Line.
Last year, HMM agreed to become a strategic partner to Sinokor and Heung-A by creating an HMM+K2 consortium.
As explained, the plan is to enhance synergy effects in the container shipping sector through the collaboration between the integrated company, which focuses on Intra-Asia, and HMM, which has a central position in long-distance ocean routes.
In the second half of 2017, South Korean container carriers joined forces to form a cooperation body named Korea Shipping Partnership aimed at strengthening the country’s shipping industry following the collapse of Hanjin Shipping. The fourteen national carriers launched a cooperation council to overcome the crisis in the industry and seek new business opportunities.
The council removed three routes and withdrew eleven ships, among other restructuring measures.
