[Courtesy of SM Line]
SEOUL -- SM Line, South Korea's second-largest shipping company, has launched a new joint route with two local partners to cover ports in China, Thailand and Vietnam as part of efforts to beef up its presence in the competitive market.
The company said Monday that the new CTX (China Thailand Express) route grouping SM Line, Korea Marine Transport and Sinokor Merchant Marine would be put into service on Tuesday, using three 1,700 TEU ships that would run through Qingdao, Shanghai, Ho Chi Minh, Laem Chabang and Bangkok.
"We are expanding cooperation with domestic and overseas shipping companies to increase our profitability and cost competitiveness, not just to increase the scale of service," an unnamed SM Line official said in a statement."By opening this route, we will be able to offer more diverse services to our customers.
SM Line has launched a series of joint routes with domestic and foreign partners to strengthen its competitiveness as negotiations to cooperate with its domestic rival Hyundai Merchant Marine remained bogged down.
SM Line acquired a U.S.-Asia route from Hanjin Shipping, which was liquidated in February last year under a sweeping government-led program to restructure South Korea's ailing shipping industry. Creditors run Hyundai Merchant as a new flag carrier. Shippers have been in trouble due to falling freight rates stemming from an oversupply of ships and a protracted business slump.
reporter
Lim Chang-won
cwlim34@ajunews.com
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