June 12--FRENCH shipping giant, CMA CGM will launch a weekly service linking the Mediterranean with Djibouti, the Arabian Gulf, Pakistan and India.
CMA CGM affiliate APL and Ocean Alliance partner COSCO will collaborate on the new INDIAMED service.
The loop will supplement CMA CGM's current MEGEM and MEDEX services in the same region, the carrier said.
With the additional loop, the East Mediterranean to Middle East trade will benefit from increased reefer capacity, new direct connections and transshipment points to Europe and East Africa, CMA CGM explained.
The service, which starts from July2, will call the ports of Khor Fakkan, Karachi, Nhava Sheva, Mundra, Djibouti, Jeddah, Damietta, Piraeus, Malta, Aliaga, Mersin, Port Said West and Khor Fakkan.
Meanwhile, the French shipping company's subsidiary APL announced the launch of the India Pakistan-Mediterranean Express (IPM) Service, its first weekly service that directly connects India and Pakistan with the Mediterranean markets.
APL's head of Asia-Europe trade, Eric Eng, said: "APL's new IPM service signifies another milestone in broadening our Indian Subcontinent (ISC) service offerings. APL customers in South Asia can expect to benefit from its direct shipping route and wide coverage of the Mediterranean ports.
"With its strategic port rotation that serves the major transshipment hubs of Malta, Damietta, Piraeus, Nhava Sheva and Mundra, shippers can tap on APL's global network at these relay ports for further connectivity into vast key European, Asia and the US East Coast markets."
In a statement, APL said that besides offering the fastest transit time from Mersin and Aliaga to the ISC markets, the IPM service also assures shippers an optimal handling of outbound cargo from India through a network of inland container depots located across the country before heading for the ports of Mundra and Nhava Sheva.
The first sailing of the new IPM service will commence from the Port of Karachi, Pakistan, on 2 July 2017. The service will call the ports of Khor Fakkan, Karachi, Nhava Sheva, Mundra, Djibouti, Jeddah, Damietta, Piraeus, Malta, Aliaga, Mersin and Port Said West.