MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company will likely see the proportion of its chartered ships decline in the coming months, according to chief executive Soren Toft.
As “first and foremost” a shipping company, the carrier prefers to operate its own ships, although it will also be sending some older ships to be recycled, he added.
Speaking at the annual TPM conference in Long Beach on 27 January, Toft said MSC had invested significantly in renewing its fleet in recent years.
He added the company would keep on injecting billions of dollars to ensure it can continue to be a long-term partner for customers.
Toft acknowledged during an on-stage interview that his company’s strategy differed from that of other liner operators.
“We define ourselves on what the customer wants, not on what we want to offer,” he said.
Toft said that MSC remains committed to long-term partnerships, and investments that look far into the future, but did not disclose specific details of the company’s strategy.
“We are a family company, so we think really long term. For us, it is about how we can build the next 53 years of history and not just the next quarter,” he said.
That meant realising investments that will ensure the company’s growth, enhancing the fleet and developing productive container terminals.
“The world has seen through the supply chain crunch just how important the logistics and shipping industry really is — we keep global trade moving,” Toft said.
“It has really displayed the fundamental role that we have, and customers are now thinking about how to make their supply chain as resilient for the future.”
Toft added that supply chains and the freight market have normalised and the global economy should see some improvements in the second half of the year.
Container shipping will serve as the bedrock for the growth of international trade and commerce, and “global trade will prevail” despite the disruptions of Covid and geopolitical factors, Toft remarked.
“The world will continue to be globalised, but with a more distributed supply chain,” he concluded.
