by Manal Barakat, SeaNewsEditor
New & updated services
Africa↔Asia
MSC launched the Iroko service on 24 September, connecting Asia with Africa with information as follows:
- Carrier service name: Iroko Service
- Port rotation: Ningbo - Nansha - Singapore - Pointe Noire - Contonou - Lagos - Onne - Lobito - Singapore - Xiamen - Ningbo
Africa↔North America
On 7 October, MSC will launch an Africa-NA service titled USWASA with calls in Savannah and Durban. The service is operated by MSC with the following port rotation.
- Carrier service name: USWASA Express
- Port rotation: New York - Baltimore - Savannah - Freeport - Lome - Durban - Coega - Cape Town - San Pedro - New York
Africa↔South America
The Santos Port call was removed from Hapag-Lloyd's SAT service route, effective 25 September.
- Carrier service name: SAT
- Port rotation: Paranagua - Itajai - Durban - Luanda - Paranagua
Asia↔Middle East
Effective October 2025, MSC will launch a new service to connect the Indian Subcontinent to the Middle East. The service will be operated by MSC, with two vessels deployed on the service.
- Carrier service name: Sri Lanka to Abu Dhabi
- Port rotation: Colombo – Hambantota – Abu Dhabi – Colombo
- First sailing: AS Alva – 15 October
Asia ↔North Europe
The Ocean Alliance revised the port rotation of the FAL3 service by reinstating the temporarily dropped port call at Tangier on a fortnightly basis. The service is operated by CMA CGM (FAL3), while Evergreen (FAL3), COSCO (AEU6) and OOCL (LL5) will be slot charterers. Fifteen vessels are deployed on the service, with an average vessel capacity of 23,000 TEU.
- Port rotation: Antwerp – Zeebrugge (fortnightly) – Tangier (fortnightly) – Port Klang – Qingdao – Shanghai – Ningbo – Yantian – Singapore – Le Havre – Rotterdam – Hamburg – Antwerp
- First sailing: CMA CGM Trocadero – 14 September
Asia↔Mediterreanean
Maersk will temporarily re‑sequence calls on its AE12 service between Asia and South Europe by calling Rijeka ahead of Koper to mitigate operational challenges in the Adriatic.
- Carrier service name: AE12
- Port rotation: Port Said – Rijeka – Koper – Port Said
- First sailing: Al Jasrah, ETD TBC
Maersk will temporarily adjust its SE1 service between Asia and South Europe by advancing the Rijeka call ahead of Koper to improve schedule reliability.
- Carrier service name: SE1
- Port rotation: Ningbo – Shanghai – Tanjung Pelepas – Port Said – Rijeka – Koper – Port Said – Colombo – Ningbo
Liner Wan Hai announced the launch of the FM1 service on the Asia-Med trade starting 13 September 2025.
- Carrier service name: Far East-Mediterranean 1 (FM1)
- Port rotation: Shanghai - Ningbo - Nansha - Shekou - Port Klang - Jeddah - Aqaba - Sokhna - Alexandria - Izmit - Ambarli – Shanghai
Asia↔North America
MSC will revise the port rotation of the Carioca service, which connects Asia to the East Coast of South America. The service is operated by MSC, with an average vessel capacity of 9,000 TEU.
- Carrier service name: Carioca
- Port rotation: Singapore – Colombo – Rio de Janeiro – Santos – Paranagua – Itapoa – Itajai – Buenos Aires – Rio Grande – Itajai – Navegantes – Santos – Rio de Janeiro – Walvis Bay – Hambantota – Abu Dhabi – Singapore – Qingdao – Busan – Ningbo – Shanghai – Shekou – Singapore
Premier Alliance will split its MS2 pendulum service across Asia and North America, set to begin in October. The Asia-Mediterranean segment will operate as a standalone service, renamed the Mediterranean 2 (MD2) service. The Transpacific segment will be integrated with the AG1 service and launched as the new Gulf Pacific South 2 (GS2) service.
- Carrier service name: GS2
- Port rotation: Singapore – Laem Chabang – Cai Mep – Shanghai – Pusan – Long Beach – Oakland – Pusan – Dalian – Xingang – Qingdao – Pusan – Shanghai – Ningbo – Kaohsiung – Shekou – Singapore Jebel Ali – Dammam – Jubail – Hamad – Abu Dhabi – Jebel Ali – Sohar - Singapore
- First sailing: YM Wonderland
Asia↔Oceania
CMA CGM launched the APR2 service on September 7, connecting Oceania with Asia with calls in Busan and Brisbane.
- Carrier service name: APR2
- Port rotation: Qingdao - Busan - Shanghai - Ningbo - Nansha - Lae - Motukea - Brisbane - Gladstone - Townsville - Qingdao
Asia↔South America
CMA CGM will launch its Cherry Express service between Chile and China, providing a direct 23‑day connection between San Antonio and Shanghai, alongside seasonal rotation adjustments on ACSA1 and M2X
- Carrier service name: Cherry Express - ACSA 1
- Port rotation: Shanghai → Ningbo → Qingdao → Busan → Callao → Chancay → San Antonio → Shanghai
- Carrier service name: Cherry Express - M2X
- Port rotation: Shekou → Ningbo → Shanghai → Tianjin → Qingdao → Busan → Manzanillo → Lazaro Cardenas → Posorja → Buenaventura → Yokohama → Busan → Shekou
CMA CGM announced that Kaohsiung and Manzanillo (Mexico, Pacific) have been removed from the eastbound sailing of the PEX2/CAX1 service.
- Port rotation: Singapore - Shenzhen (Shekou) - Hong Kong - Ningbo - Shanghai - Qingdao - Busan - Balboa - Colon (Manzanillo - Panama) - Cartagena - Kingston - Caucedo - Singapore
As of 25 September, MSC launched the Aplaca service connecting Asia and South America.
- Carrier service name: Alpaca
- Port rotation: Nansha - Hong Kong - Ningbo - Busan - Callao - Arica - Iquique - San Antonio – Nansha
Intra-Asia
The CNC Line, owned by CMA CGM, will add Masan Port and remove Hong Kong from the rotation of the BMX service as of 25 September.
- Carrier service name: BMX
- Port rotation: Busan - Masan - Dalian - Tianjin - Qingdao - Xiamen - Shantou - Shenzhen (Shekou) - Guangzhou (Nansha) - Manila - Davao - Busan
MSC updated the Malabar service by removing Vizhinjam, Nhava Sheva, Hazira ports and adding Port Qasim, effective 25 September.
- Carrier service name: Malabar Express
- Port rotation: Colombo - Hambantota - Mundra - Karachi - Port Qasim - Colombo
Effective November 2025, Evergreen will launch a new service to connect Northeast Asia to Southeast Asia. There will be three vessels deployed on the service, with an average vessel capacity of 2,500 TEU.
- Carrier service name: CIM
- Port rotation: Dalian – Tianjin Xingang – Qingdao – Ningbo – Surabaya – Jakarta – Singapore – Port Klang – Kaohsiung – Dalian
- First sailing: Ever Order – 1 November
CMA CGM launched the JP8 service on 26 September with connections between Japan and the Philippines.
- Carrier service name: Japan Philippines 8 (JP8)
- Port rotation: Shekou - Nansha - Subic Bay - Batangas - Cebu - Davao - Tokyo - Yokohama - Kobe - Moji - Shekou
Intra-Europe
In the first week of October, liner COSCO service GBX will be split into two loops with Gdynia replacing Gdansk.
- Carrier service name: German Baltic Express (GBX)
- Port rotation: Bremerhaven - Hamburg - Kotka - Helsinki - Bremerhaven - Hamburg - Klaipeda - Gdynia - Bremerhaven
Intra-Mediterranean
As of 25 September, Barcelona port call was removed from rotation of the Line Algiers Express operated by MSC.
- Carrier service name: Line Algiers Express
- Port rotation: La Spezia - Marseille - Algiers - La Spezia
Effective September 2025, CMA CGM will revise the port rotation of the LRX service, which connects the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, by adding a port call at Thessaloniki. With the revised rotation, three vessels will be deployed on the service, each with an average vessel capacity of 2,300 TEU.
- Carrier service name: LRX
- Port rotation: Mersin – Thessaloniki – Beirut – Jeddah – Lattakia – Iskenderun – Mersin
- First sailing: CMA CGM Navegantes – 24 September
ZIM launched a new service to connect Israel and Egypt to Turkey on a fortnightly basis. There will be two vessels deployed on the service, with an average vessel capacity of 2,000 TEU.
- Carrier service name: WTX
- Port rotation: Ambarli – Izmit – Gemlik – Izmir – Port Said – Haifa – Alexandria – Ambarli
- First sailing: Erasmus Master – 21 September
MSC launched a new service this month, servicing Mediterranean ports. The service began on 7 September and is called Intra E-Med String 2.
- Carrier service name: Intra E-Med String 2
- Port rotation: Piraeus - Lattakia - Tartous - Mersin - Beirut - Piraeus
North Europe↔North America
The Ocean Alliance will reinstate Antwerp on its Victory Bridge service between North Europe and the US/Mexico Gulf, removing Zeebrugge from the rotation.
- Carrier service name: Victory Bridge
- Port rotation: Southampton – Rotterdam – Antwerp – Bremerhaven – Rotterdam – Veracruz – Altamira – Houston – New Orleans – Southampton
