Carriers Pour Fresh Capacity Into ex-India Trades as JNPA Volumes Jump 19%

JNPA, India's biggest container gateway, handled some 865,000 teu last month — its highest-ever monthly throughput and a sharp rise from 680,000 teu in October 2025 — as Asian carriers pour new capacity into ex-India trades on the strength of that demand. Year-to-date volumes at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority have reached 5.5m teu, up 19% year on year, according to port data.

The growth is drawing a wave of network investment. Hong Kong-based OOCL, South Korea's HMM and Dubai-based Emirates Shipping Line (ESL) have all markedly consolidated their Indian operations in recent months through service launches and network enhancements.

What is OOCL adding?

OOCL, a Cosco subsidiary, will launch a shuttle loop at the end of this month connecting India's east coast ports of Chennai and Visakhapatnam to Port Klang in Malaysia. The single-port-of-destination design targets Indian transhipment cargo.

"The FCS4 will provide direct connections, offering improved flexibility, connectivity, and service reliability for cargo movements between Malaysia and East India," OOCL told customers.

The shuttle complements two intra-Asia services OOCL added out of India's west coast, calling at JNPA and Mundra, in the second quarter. Their rotations are:

• SIS2 (South-east Asia–Indian Subcontinent Service 2): Qinzhou, Yangpu, Haiphong, Singapore, Mundra, Singapore, Hong Kong, Qinzhou
• SIS (South-east Asia–Indian Subcontinent Service): Laem Chabang, Singapore, Port Klang, JNPA (Nhava Sheva), Mundra, Karachi, Port Klang, Singapore, Laem Chabang

How are ESL and HMM expanding?

ESL has split its Red Sea network out of India into two loops, deploying two vessels on each in a pendulum arrangement, with the upgraded twin operations beginning this month. The South Red Sea Service (SRS) runs JNPA–Jeddah–JNPA, while the North Red Sea Service (NRS) rotates JNPA, Djibouti, Aqaba, Sokhna, Sohar and back to JNPA, according to industry updates.

HMM opened a new India–East Africa loop in late September, together with Cosco, Interasia Lines and PIL. The Gulf–India–East Africa (GIA) service links JNPA, Mundra, Dar es Salaam, Mombasa and JNPA on a 35-day rotation — arguably a more competitive option than previous networks on the promising India-Africa trade.

New entrants are also arriving. Vietnam-based Hai An Lines launched the standalone CVI service last month connecting Chennai with South-east Asia and China, deploying the 1,800-teu Haian Beta.

Why are carriers betting on India?

Industry sources read the capacity influx as a signal that carriers expect sustained growth ex-India, with the economy forecast to expand faster than other traditional emerging markets. Government data estimates real GDP grew 7.8% in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026-27.

India's export sector has stayed resilient through 2026 despite geopolitical challenges, industry participants say.

"Our exporters continue to respond to uncertainty with agility, strengthening their presence across markets and product categories," said SC Ralhan, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations. "The broad-based contribution of traditional and emerging sectors adds depth to this performance."

What does the influx mean for shippers?

For Indian shippers and forwarders, the new loops bring more direct port pairs and shorter transhipment paths — particularly on east coast connections to Malaysia and on the Red Sea and East Africa lanes, where single-POD shuttles and pendulum networks reduce transit complexity. For carriers, the risk is that tonnage growth outpaces cargo growth on intra-Asia lanes, pressuring spot rates if demand softens from the double-digit pace JNPA is currently recording.

The dispute backdrop adds another variable: a cargo boycott threat by Indian brokers over empty-container fee hikes is brewing across Indian ports, a fresh source of potential operational disruption alongside the capacity boom. With more loops scheduled to open in the coming weeks, the balance between injected capacity and India's 19% volume growth will shape ex-Asia rate trajectories into next year.