Ted, load factors on Asia-Europe are 'okay' (not great) since this was the only main trade on which the ocean carriers successfully curbed capacity. YOY capacity on this corridor is down 2.1% Jan 2016 vs Jan 2015. All other main trades have increased capacity: Asia-North America up 2.5% YOY, Intra-Asia up 4% YOY, Middle East up 12.7% YOY. These are the actual numbers. You do the maths. There is no room for conspiracy theories. Again, please don your tin foil hat, Ted, if you really believe that all carriers have conspired to ship empties around in an effort to pretend high utilisation rates and then call for rate hikes.

The four errant boxes removed at Malaga (cf departure pics). It was strange stowing, with each stack exposed with vacant stacks between.

With loading ports apparently Qingdao, Yangshan, Daxie, Xiamen and Yantian - calls at Singapore and Westport (MYS) - then direct to Malaga, it's difficult to see why they would bring empties on a pointless round trip. A lot of stuff coming from China is volume cargo of no great weight (even my roll of bubble-wrap has Made in China). But something still doesn't seem quite right, somehow. It will be interesting to see how she looks at later ports of call. Currently due Rotterdam 1100UTC 22/1.

Jan,,, simple question,,how it is possible then that all over the world container ships are half empty (or half full)only in Europe ,where the economic conditions are really not the best at the moment shipping line after shipping line arrives with mega boxers which are filled to the max. Do you (and as per you, others too) really believe that just in the most difficult market at present such thing is possible. Shouldn,t they not also only half full,,or are they perhaps filled with empties ?

@Michael
The lower once are most probably loaded once,, but the containers above tier 4, may be five are sure empty for the stacking weight restrictions already

That's usually a "dress up" for the maiden voyage.

One thing I observed in the last few years (especially with the new big ships of UASC, Maersk, CMA CGM, ...) is that own containers of the company (nearly all in the same livery) are stacked on the outside, all other containers are between these two big "walls". You can see what i mean in the picture above. This must be done on purpose, right? Are these empties, stacked there on purpose, or is it possible to do this with the "regular" cargo?

Ed, you continue to miss the point. Nobody disputes your claim that ships carry (quite a number of) empty containers on a regular basis. This is part of everyday operations however, mainly due to global trade imbalances and the necessity to reposition equipment. What I - and others here - continue to reject are your silly and ludicrous claims that this is done 'to make ships look full'. You are clearly in tinfoil hat territory.

@JAN_T
LOOK HERE, yesterday in Veracruz
http://www.shipspotting.com/gallery/photo.php?lid=2395208

apparently pretty full,,look at the draft mark,, pretty light weight actually for that amount of container on deck,, or just a lot empties between ?

or this one
http://www.shipspotting.com/gallery/photo.php?lid=2395210
went alongside just ahead of me

when it looks full it is not necessarily really full.
btw,,one can also show nicely a full ship by mark when one takes on more ballast as really needed :-)

Capain Ted, if you seriously believe that shipping lines fill vessels with empty containers 'in order to show they are full', then you apparently do not even have a basic grasp of the maritime industry - or you are seriously deluded. Apologies if this sounds harsh, but you post is just so far from reality...

Container ships from Europe to the Far East are sailing full of empty boxes not just to make the ships LOOK full (as Capt Ted says) but because the trade is very much a one-way traffic, from the FE to Europe and China needs the empty boxes to fill with more cheap stuff to export to the West.
Capt Ted's cynicism about the shipping industry is sometimes leading to naive statements that one would perhaps not expect from a serving ship's master at tbe "sharp end" of the shipping industry

@ Jan_t
Just went alongside Veracruz, and guess what,,pilot told me ,,most container vessel coming now half empty.
MSC does not call Veracruz anymore on regular basis as before (all as per pilot)but comes now together with Maersk, so out of two ships one looks full. Those ships coming from East to EU are usually full container,,but look at the above,,also not on draft mark !!! Which means a lot of those container in the 7-8-9 tier are empties. Where I sail around, mostly North-south-Central america,,most container ships are 50-70 % full,,, To the EU they make them full by empties in order to show they are FULL

Looking at the height of those stacked containers at sides really makes me feel the size of these ships...
And does it already alarm it's WAY too much of ~400m long ships in a recent decade than before?

Did you notice the collapsed stack of empty reefer boxes right rear of the forward mast ?

Paul, do you mean like this?
http://www.kelvindavies.co.uk/kelvin//details.php?image_id=20861
http://www.kelvindavies.co.uk/kelvin//details.php?image_id=20862

Captain Ted when we start to see these ships getting around with empty decks then we start to worry, but most pictures I see here like the one above look to be earning their keep.

Bravo Captain Ted.We all should sing this song louder and louder!

Ted, you are singing the same old song in 90% of your comments here. It is getting a bit tiresome to be honest.

Well,,one thing is for sure,,it will not stop before the first of the big ones will go bankrupt. The bad part is, that then stupid governments in the pockets of big money anyhow will rescue them and keep them artiticial alive be it by taking them over or by giving them high credit lines. and the race will go on, until someones gets a grip and stops the whole story. by then the whole world wide shipping industrie is in shambles, but the managers who created the mess are the last one which will be held responsible and that responsible will consist of a golden shute into retirement!!! while 10000,s life going bust because of unemployment.

Who is going to win the race as over-capacity ruines the markets/margins? These huge ships are ill-fated as have been the ULCC tankers in the 1973 - 1985 period. Korean shipping lines are supported by the government as they are going under in debt. Maersk has laid up their first M-class 18.500TEU ship. Have a nice day shippers ...!°