Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk Cooperation Readies for Bookings

Container shipping firm Hapag-Lloyd and sector peer Maersk expect to open bookings in two weeks for their new Gemini cooperation starting in Feb. 2025, Hapag chief executive Rolf Habben Jansen said in a call with analysts on Thursday.

"We will take bookings in early December and have 10 weeks to go for start of operations," he said on a presentation for nine-months earnings. 

"We are confident that we are off to a good start."

The tie-up, which both say would bring more efficient and flexible services, is expected to grow if successful.

On Thursday, Jansen also said that Donald Trump's victory in U.S. presidential elections gives mixed signals for global shipping, as positive macroeconomic impulses could be countered by the damaging effects of tariffs.

"On the one hand, stocks responded positively, which could be a pointer to more economic growth in future," said Jansen in an interview with Reuters after an earnings release, when asked about prospects under a Trump administration.

"But there is this discussion about tariffs, which could put a few brakes on the world," he added. Trump had made import tariffs a tenet of his campaign pitch.

Shipping, where Hapag-Lloyd is the fifth biggest player, is a proxy for trade and a health barometer for the global economy.

(Reuters - Reporting by Vera Eckert and Elke Ahlswede, Editing by Miranda Murray)
(Reuters - Reporting by Vera Eckert, editing by Madeline Chambers)