MSC announces new Asia-USEC service

Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has announced the launch of a new weekly service, the Palmetto, from Asia to the US East Coast.

MSC is introducing a new container shipping service in order to fulfil customer demand for cargo between southeast Asia and the U.S. west coast and with a view to improving reliability in the transpacific network at a time when the entire market remains under considerable systemic pressure.

The new Sentosa service is a dedicated MSC line to link southeast Asia with the Pacific South West market and to catalyse trade between countries such as Thailand and Vietnam and the U.S. west coast.

It should enable a significantly improved transit time for MSC customers shipping goods between southeast Asia and California, ensuring that MSC retains a direct Laem Chabang – Long Beach call (in both directions) within its transpacific network. This compensates for the removal of a Laem Chabang – U.S. call on the Jaguar service, which is being announced separately.

The addition of the Sentosa service is intended to improve the distribution of cargo flow across the various existing services and port terminals either side of the Pacific, enhancing schedule reliability in this region.

This service is expected to start in early April with the MSC ORNELLA and its rotation will be as follows: Singapore – Tanjung Pelepas – Laem Chabang – Vung Tau – Long Beach – Shanghai – Ningbo – Xiamen – Singapore.