Evergreen Marine Joins CKYH Alliance

Evergreen Marine Corp., a major cargo shipper in Taiwan, will formally join forces with the CKYH alliance on March 1, building close ties with members to safeguard profits amid increasing competition in the global market, announced the president, Anchor Chang, on February 20.

Inaugurated in 2000, the alliance is composed of four international shippers: Ccscon of China, K-Line of Japan, Yang Ming Marine of Taiwan and Hanjin of South Korea, and boasts seven shipping routes between Asia and Europe, including four linking North Europe and the other the Mediterranean Sea.

With Evergreen Marine to become a new member, the alliance's routes will increase to 10, including 6 Asia-North Europe routes and 4 Asia-Mediterranean Sea routes, with the overall share in the Asia-Europe segment to surge to 23%, only next to 42% of its competitor, P3, composed of Maersk Line of Denmark, Mediterranean Shipping Company of Switzerland and CMA CGM of France, and exceeding 19% of G6, consisting of American President Lines of the U.S., Hapag-Lloyd of Germany, Mitsui OSK Lines and NYK Lines of Japan, OOCL of Hong Kong and Hyundai Merchant Marine of South Korea.

Chang said that the alliance will be renamed "CKYHE" to underscore the addition of Evergreen Marine, with  cooperation between his company and the other members to begin mid-April, initially on slot exchanges and route operations, and that  members will be able to cut freightage on shipment transits and boost coverage of linked ports.

Yang Ming Marine chairman Frank Lu is upbeat about  Evergreen Marine's joining the alliance, commenting that this will help enhance members' quality of services and profits. Lu continued that the upcoming cooperation will be eventually approved by the European authority, but whether Evergreen Marine will upgrade its involvement in the alliance in the Asia-America segment remains to be seen, given that the Federal Maritime Commission has yet to approve P3's cooperation in the U.S. (SC)

Market Share of CKYHE Members in the Asia-Europe Segment of Global Shipping Market
Company	Country	Market Share
Ccscon	China	5.7%
K-Line	Japan	2.7%
Yang Ming Marine	Taiwan	3.3%
Hanjin	S. Korea	5.1%
Evergreen Marine	Taiwan	6.4%

Source: Alphaliner

Overview of World's Big 3 Shipper Alliances
Alliance	Member	Market Share in Asia-Europe Segment
P3	Maersk Line, Mediterranean Shipping Company, CMA CGM	45%
CKYHE	Ccscon, K-Line, Yang Ming Marine, Hanjin, Evergreen Marine	26%
G6	American President Lines, Hapag-Lloyd, Mitsui OSK Lines, NYK Lines, OOCL, Hyundai Merchant Marine	19%

Source: Alphaliner