MSC leads global cellular fleet growth in H1 2025

 

The first half of 2025 saw the global cellular fleet grow by 1.18 Mteu, representing a relatively small 3.8% increase since January. This marks a break from several recent growth-fuelled years.

The expansion was primarily driven by the MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company, which alone accounted for 31% of total growth, further reinforcing its market lead. 

MSC’s fleet has expanded by 365,173 TEU since the start of the year, reaching over 6.6 Mteu. This growth stems from newbuilding deliveries and ongoing second hand tonnage acquisition. So far in 2025, MSC has received 25 newbuildings (316,691 TEU), including 12 ‘Neo-panamax’ vessels (15,400-16,200 TEU), bolstering its standalone network. 

This consistent expansion is not new for the Geneva-based carrier. MSC has been the strongest growing carrier for several years running, with notable increases of 12.3% (2024), 22.0% (2023), 7.5% (2022) and 10.7% (2021).

Its relentless pursuit of capacity has widened the gap with the number two operator, A.P. Moller - Maersk, as per an analysis by Alphaliner.

Percentage-wise, the fastest-growing carrier in this period was the Japanese-owned and Singapore-based Ocean Network Express (ONE), which expanded its fleet by 5.9%, putting it ahead of MSC (5.5%) and HMM (5.1%). This year marks a strategic shift for ONE, as it began taking delivery of new capacity under direct ownership, the analysis added.

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