NOL APL ship

Singapore-based container shipper Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) has ordered US$1.2bn worth of new vessels to capitalise on the global trade recovery, Taiwan news has reported.

Ten of the ships will be built by Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering, and they will each have a capacity of 8,400 TEU, while two other larger vessels have also been mooted.

After a lean two years in the container shipping trade, the move by NOL comes on the back of a 39 per cent increase in the firm's container volumes for the year through June.

"There couldn't be a better time for financially stable companies to invest," said Heungkuk Securities' researcher Cho In Karp.

"Shipping lines will pay a lot less for new vessels if they order now rather than waiting."

It is estimated the ships will be delivered in 2013-2014, and they will place craft that had been chartered during the economic rebound.