Global container shipping market volume - growth rate 2015-2022

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the volume of containers transported globally shrank by about 0.8 percent in 2020. Their volume is however, projected to grow by some 5.7 percent in 2021.

Uncertainty in the container market

The global supply chain has been facing a series of challenges since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. Port closures due to coronavirus outbreaks, port congestions, rising prices of bunker fuel, and problems with capacity utilization were plaguing the global container shipping industry for most of 2020 and 2021.
On the other hand, the recent spike in container freight rates turned out extremely profitable for container ship operators who reported record high profit margins in 2021.

Leading container shipping companies

The world’s leading container shippers include the Danish company APM-Maersk, the Swiss company Mediterranean Shg Co, COSCO of China, and the French company CMA CGM Group. APM-Maersk is the world’s leading container ship operator with a fleet of over 700 container ships. In terms of capacity, APM-Maersk's ships account for about 17 percent of the world's container ship fleet.