Recently, container shipping consultancy Alphaliner released a report stating that in the second quarter of 2024, the profit margins of the nine major liner operators exceeded 20%, marking the highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic. The Red Sea crisis absorbed excess capacity, leading to this growth. Similar to the early pandemic period, carriers with a significant share in the Far East export spot market performed best in the most recent quarter. Taiwanese operator Evergreen Marine Corporation (EMC) recorded the highest profit margin of 30.7%, with an operating profit of $1 billion. Effective cost control and revenue growth allowed EMC to achieve the best profit margin among all operators in half of the past 14 quarters.

Wan Hai Lines, another Taiwanese operator, ranked second with a profit margin of 28.5%. Wan Hai returned to profitability in 2023 and has remained profitable in 2024 so far. Alphaliner noted that Wan Hai benefitted from the Red Sea crisis as excess vessel capacity was absorbed due to detours around the Cape of Good Hope. The surge in new shipbuilding during the pandemic aligned well with the market's recovery. The consultancy stated, “Wan Hai has taken delivery of 40 vessels with a combined capacity of 265,000 TEUs over the past two years. With rising cost bases, without the impact of the Red Sea crisis, Wan Hai would have faced a very different set of data.”

In terms of profit margins, HMM and Yang Ming tied for third place with margins of 26.9% for the quarter. ZIM Line and COSCO both reported profit margins exceeding 20%, while ONE's margin was only 15.8%, reflecting its focus on long-term shipping contracts. COSCO Group posted an operating profit of $1.6 billion in Q2 2024, with a profit margin of 24.9%. The company noted that rapid growth in emerging markets such as South America and East Africa was another factor driving profitability.

Maersk and other European shipping companies had relatively lower profit margins due to their focus on long-term shipping contracts. In the second quarter of 2024, Maersk reported a profit margin of 5.6%, the lowest among major operators for three consecutive quarters.

This year, COSCO launched new routes between the Far East and the West Coast of South America, as well as between Dalian Port in China and Mexico. COSCO also upgraded its China-Vietnam and China-East Africa routes.