Top ten international shipping companies

Maersk (Maersk Group) : Headquartered in Denmark, Maersk is one of the world's largest container shipping companies. With a fleet of more than 700 ships in more than 160 countries and regions around the world, it handles more than 100 million TEUs of cargo annually.

Mediterranean Shipping Company (Mediterranean Shipping Company) : Based in Switzerland, it is the world's second largest container shipping company. Its fleet of more than 500 vessels covers the global area and handles more than 24 million TEUs of cargo annually.

CMA CGM: Headquartered in France, CMA CGM is the world's third largest container shipping company. Its fleet of more than 500 vessels covers the global area and handles more than 20 million TEUs of cargo annually.

COSCO (CoSCO Shipping Group) : Headquartered in China, it is the fourth largest container shipping company in the world. Its fleet of more than 400 vessels covers the global area and handles more than 19 million TEUs of cargo annually.

Hapag-Lloyd (Haberroyd) : Headquartered in Germany, it is the world's fifth largest container shipping company. It has a fleet of more than 200 vessels covering the global area and handles more than 10 million TEUs of cargo annually.

ONE (Orient Ocean Lines) : Based in Japan, it is an integrated shipping company formed by the merger of three companies (NYK, MOL and K Line) and is the sixth largest container shipping company in the world. Its fleet of more than 200 vessels covers the global area and handles more than 6 million TEUs of cargo annually.

Evergreen Marine: Headquartered in Taiwan（China）, Evergreen Marine is the seventh largest container shipping company in the world. It has a fleet of more than 200 vessels covering the global area and handles more than 5 million TEUs of cargo annually.

Yang Ming Marine Transport: Headquartered in Taiwan（China）, Yang Ming Marine Transport is the world's eighth largest container shipping company. Its fleet of more than 100 ships covers the global area and handles more than 3 million TEUs of cargo annually.

Ocean Network Express (ONE) : Headquartered in Japan, Ocean Network Express is one of the consolidated shipping lines formed by the merger of three companies (NYK, MOL and K Line) and is the ninth largest container shipping company in the world. Its fleet of more than 100 ships covers the global area and handles more than 3 million TEUs of cargo annually.

ZIM (Israel International Shipping Line) : The department is located in Haifa, Israel. Mainly engaged in container transportation, port terminal business and international logistics services. Today, ZIM serves a global network of more than 160 routes and nearly 100 ports with a fleet size of more than 80 vessels, including large vessels with a capacity of 14,000 TEUs.

The relationship between international freight forwarders and shipping companies

Shipping companies and freight forwarders (forwarders) are two entities that play different roles in international trade.

Shipping companies are companies that specialize in maritime transportation. They own and operate their own ships and fleets and provide transportation services from one port to another. They are usually billed based on factors such as the volume, volume, weight and route of the cargo transported.

A forwarder is an agent who handles the transportation of goods on behalf of the owner or importer. Freight forwarders can provide customers with a series of services such as cargo booking, loading and unloading, customs clearance and logistics management, so as to provide customers with a full range of logistics solutions.

In international trade, shipping companies usually cooperate with freight forwarders to provide comprehensive logistics services. Forwarders can book transportation services with shipping companies on behalf of customers and arrange the loading, unloading and customs clearance processes. Forwarders often keep in touch with multiple shipping companies to get better prices and service, while providing customers with more shipping options.

Generally speaking, freight forwarders are the agents providing logistics services in trade, while shipping companies are the companies providing the actual transportation services. The cooperation between the two parties can provide customers with better logistics solutions and speed up the process of freight transportation, so it is very important to choose a quality international freight forwarding company.