The docking of the container ship Hanjin Chennai at the Port of Hamburg has this week marked the beginning of a new joint service connecting northern Europe and the east coast of South America.
The ESE service, which is operated by Hanjin, COSCO, UASC and CCNI, sees six 2,500 TEU ships deployed on a weekly basis between Hamburg and the Brazilian ports of Rio de Janeiro, Santos (northbound and southbound) and Itajai.
'Our customers operate globally and therefore we have to provide them with diversified, global services,' commented YK Song, managing director of Hanjin Shipping Europe regional headquarters. 'Hamburg is and will remain an important hub for both our company and our customers.'
According to the group, the new service represents a further stage in the shipping line's diversification plans and is a response to the change in global cargo flows and markets.
The Port of Hamburg Marketing Authority outlined that, in 2010, the flow of container traffic between Hamburg and the east coast of South America increased to 260,000 TEU, a rise of 10.6 per cent over the previous year, with Brazil alone accounting for over 189,000 TEU.
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