Container service reliability improved for the second quarter in a row during the third quarter of 2011, according to the latest report from shipping and maritime consultant Drewry Maritime Research.
The latest “Schedule Reliability Insight” report said the proportion of 3,281 ships arriving on time (defined as either arriving at port on the advertised ETA or a day earlier) at selected ports in the third quarter of 2011 rose to 63 percent, up by 8 percentage points against the previous quarter.
Danish shipping giant Maersk Line retained its top position as the most reliable of the top 20 carriers (by vessel fleet size) across all the trades covered by Drewry. APL took second place, while its New World Alliance partner Hyundai Merchant Marine came third.
Thirteen of the top 20 container lines equaled or surpassed the 63 percent on-time industry average, and all but three of the major carriers improved on their scores from the previous quarter, said the report.
“The latest ‘Schedule Reliability Insight’ results do suggest that carriers are committed to improving service integrity, particularly as the improvement occurred during a period of faltering demand and rates when the motivation to keep to schedule could have wavered,” said Simon Heaney, editor of the report.
Besides ranking carriers on an industry-wide level, “Schedule Reliability Insight” also analyzes carriers’ relative performance in three core East-West trades (trans-Pacific, Asia/Europe/Med and trans-Atlantic) and reliability by trade and service.
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