Who’s Rising?

Pacific International Lines, No. 34 in the JOC Top 40, Up 66.6 PercentThe Singapore-based carrier in early 2012 added a 10th 1,500-TEU vessel to its China Transpacific Service that calls at ports in China, Australia-New Zealand, Malaysia and Southern California. PIL’s volume of U.S. exports has nearly doubled since 2008.

United Arab Shipping, No. 22, Up 26.0 PercentUASC is on track to maintain its rapid growth rate — the Dubai-based carrier’s export volume has climbed more than 50 percent since 2008 — after announcing plans to join China Shipping Container Lines on three trans-Pacific services from Asia to the U.S. Southwest and Pacific Northwest using 4,250-TEU vessels.

Antillean Marine, No. 37, Up 25.8 PercentLocated on the Miami River, Antillean serves the trade between the Port of Miami and the Caribbean, including the Dominican Republic and Haiti. In March, it upgraded its service between Miami and Cap Haitien, Haiti, from biweekly to weekly. The rapid growth, however, wasn’t enough to bring Antillean to pre-recession volumes, as it fell 7.3 percent short of 2008.

Turkon Line, No. 35, Up 24.1 PercentIstanbul-based Turkon operates in the trans-Atlantic, serving four East Coast ports from the Mediterranean and Middle East. It has benefited greatly from increased trade to and from Turkey and the Middle East, two of the world’s fastest-growing emerging markets.

“K” Line, No. 11, Up 21.3 PercentJapan’s third-largest container carrier by fleet capacity, “K” Line grew more rapidly than MOL and NYK Line in the outbound and inbound trades to the U.S. last year. It did so through a combination of the country’s recovery from the devastating March 2011 earthquake, a stronger yen that has boosted Japan’s buying power and the addition of a new service.

Who’s Falling?

CSAV Group, No. 20, Down 33.3 PercentAfter struggling through seven straight quarters of financial losses, the Chilean carrier appears to be getting back on track, after a restructuring program was implemented last year. Still, CSAV’s U.S. 2012 export volumes fell by a third year-over-year, though they were 10.5 percent ahead of 2008.

Bernuth Lines, No. 40, Down 24.5 PercentLike Antillean Marine, Bernuth is based in Miami, but has a much broader service area that not only includes the Dominican Republic and Haiti in the Caribbean, but also numerous island nations and Nicaragua. Bernuth’s four-year slide in handling U.S. exports serves as a stark contrast to Antillean’s rise.

Horizon Lines, No. 21, Down 19.4 PercentAfter pleading guilty to a felony antitrust charge for price-fixing in the U.S. mainland-to-Puerto Rico trade, Horizon was on the ropes, facing possible debt default and bankruptcy. CEO Chuck Raymond resigned, and in stepped Stephen Fraser, who helped stem the negative tide. Horizon returned to profitability in its fiscal 2013 third quarter before falling back into the red in the fourth. Fraser’s tenure as interim CEO ended last June, when Sam Woodward was named president and CEO.

Matson, No. 30, Down 12.8 PercentThe second U.S.-flag operator to post a double-digit decline in export volumes, the Oakland-based carrier discontinued one of two services to China in 2011. 2012’s numbers were an anomaly for Matson, which had posted strong growth in the previous three years. Indeed, 2012’s volumes, while down nearly 13 percent year-over-year, were nearly double Matson’s export volume of 2008.

Dole Ocean Cargo Express, No. 36, Down 10.5 PercentOwned by Dole Food Co. before going public in 2009, the carrier serves the refrigerated shipping market, primarily carrying bananas and other fruit from Central and South America. Dole’s export volumes have trended down since the recession, with 2012 levels off nearly 30 percent from 2008.

What will 2013 bring?

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