NYK president Tadaaki Naito has sounded a warning that the company must change or risk dying out.
In a speech to staff marking its 133rd anniversary, he said: "We have reached the limits of the traditional business model.
"I feel that our group is currently facing a situation more challenging than anything it has faced in the past.
"If we continue to rely on outside forces under the belief that we will be OK continuing the current business as long as the market recovers, I feel the company will not survive."
He added: "We will only be able to create a new era by questioning what we currently believe to be true, working from various perspectives to differentiate our service compared to competitors, and tenaciously executing the business. Now is our time to change a crisis into an opportunity."
NYK has a plan in place to liquefy assets in order to obtain the capital necessary to develop and transform its businesses, he added.
"We have reached a point where we have to use the internal reserves accumulated by our predecessors since the founding of the company to create a future for the group, and I am aware that how to best use these precious limited management resources is an extremely important issue," Naito said.
Innovation from adversity
It is focusing on digitalisation and green initiatives in what he called an "opaque world."
Naito said the group has previously faced "numerous crises and difficulties and has continued to grow by adapting to new environments."
He pointed to the example of skyrocketing Japanese car exports that stretched the capacity of traditional cargoships.
NYK quickly developed specialised car carriers to speed up loading.
"As one way to reduce damage to finished cars, which occasionally occurs during transport, we were the first company to propose counter-clockwise loading," he said.
"This initiative was highly regarded by customers and led to the expansion and development of our car carrier business."
