HK Stock Market Move | Shipping stocks rally collectively; Maersk's order for 26 large ships finalized; institutions say tight shipyard capacity in the coming years will create a supply bottleneck.

Shipping stocks rally collectively. As of press time, TS LINES (02510) rose 5.06% to HK$14.72; Pacific Basin Shipping (02343) rose 4.09% to HK$4.325; COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation (01138) rose 2.86% to HK$19.81; COSCO Shipping Holdings (01919) rose 2.77% to HK$17.04; SITC (01308) rose 2.08% to HK$49.16; OOIL (00316) rose 1.85% to HK$149. On the news front, according to market media reports, on September 18, Maersk confirmed it had signed construction contracts for 26 large container ships. Each vessel has a capacity of 18,600 TEU, all equipped with dual-fuel engines capable of running on liquefied natural gas, and are scheduled for delivery between 2029 and 2030. Maersk has not yet disclosed the specific shipyards or the order value. Industry insiders believe this move signals that after years of a cautious shipbuilding strategy focused on "fleet renewal of older vessels," Maersk is once again expanding its fleet size. Guotai Haitong believes that before the Middle East conflict, tanker shipping had already entered a super bull market. During the conflict, war risk premiums, regional disruptions, and efficiency losses drove freight rates to new highs. In the medium term, a recovery of the strait is expected, tanker supply and demand will return to high levels, and restocking along with Changjin's control of the market will further add to the momentum, with high profitability expected over the next two years. At the same time, geopolitics provides an option for unexpected upside in demand, and tight shipyard capacity provides a supply bottleneck. The bank believes the sustainability of the tanker shipping boom could exceed expectations. Over the past five years, the shipping boom has progressed in succession with orders placed sequentially, driving sustained high shipbuilding activity. It is expected that capacity constraints in this shipbuilding cycle will be better than the previous one, and a wave of VLCC orders is expected in 2026, continuing to support sustained shipbuilding prosperity.