9 Major Shipping Lines Launch New Routes & Extra Ships to Cash in on U.S.-China Trade Boom
Publish Time: 2025-05-20 Origin: Site
Shipping Lines Rush to Deploy Capacity as U.S. Demand Explodes
With Chinese exporters racing to ship goods before the 90-day tariff suspension ends, carriers are launching new routes, reviving dormant services, and dispatching extra loaders to capture booming demand.
New Players Jump In
KMTC (traditionally focused on Southeast Asia/Middle East) announced its new APX service to the U.S. West Coast, launching June 18—just 4 days after tariff cuts.
ZIM Brings Back Shelved Service
ZIM’s fast-reacting ZX2 express route (paused in April) resumes this week:
Xiamen: May 23
Shanghai: May 27
Ningbo: May 29
Additional Yantian loader sails May 22.
Alliance Goes All-In: New PS5 Route + Upgrades
The Premier Alliance (ONE, HMM, Yang Ming) unveiled major upgrades:
New PS5 Route:
Port rotation: Qingdao → Ningbo → Long Beach → Oakland → Kobe → Qingdao
First sail: June 5 (YM Mobility).
PS4 & PS6 Upgrades:
PS4 drops Ningbo (now covered by PS5), focuses on Xiamen/Yantian/LA/Oakland.
PS6 drops Qingdao, adds Busan/Kwangyang for Korean cargo.
Quiet Moves: Hapag-Lloyd & Wan Hai Add Loaders
Wan Hai: Redirected CI2 India-service vessel WAN HAI 516 to U.S. West Coast (calling Shekou, Xiamen, Ningbo, Qingdao → Long Beach/Oakland).
Hapag-Lloyd: Deployed 4,890-TEU DALLAS EXPRESS (departs Yantian May 31 via Shanghai/Busan to Los Angeles).