OOCL to launch CIS4 service linking China and Indonesia from 22 November

OOCL will launch a new China Indonesia Service, branded CIS4, on 22 November 2026, adding a direct container link between three Chinese ports and two major Indonesian gateways. The Hong Kong-based carrier confirmed both the start date and the full port rotation, though it has not yet disclosed vessel deployment or sailing frequency.

The announcement deepens OOCL's footprint on one of Southeast Asia's fastest-growing intra-Asia trade corridors, where Chinese manufactures, machinery and raw materials flow south while Indonesian commodities and consumer goods move north.

What is the CIS4 port rotation?

The new service will follow a six-port loop:

• Qingdao – northern China's industrial and export hub
• Shanghai – the world's busiest container port
• Nansha – the main southern China gateway in the Pearl River Delta
• Jakarta – Indonesia's capital and primary import gateway
• Surabaya – the country's second-largest city and East Java trade hub
• Singapore – the regional transshipment centre, before returning to Qingdao

The rotation pairs three Chinese loading points with direct calls at both of Indonesia's principal container gateways, then closes the loop through Singapore. That structure gives shippers in North China, the Yangtze Delta and South China a single service reaching Java's two main ports without transshipment.

Why is the carrier adding capacity now?

According to OOCL, CIS4 aims to improve connectivity, flexibility and service reliability for cargo moving between the two countries. The carrier frames the loop as a way to strengthen its China–Indonesia network while giving customers additional transport options alongside existing connections.

For shippers, the practical effect is more choice on a lane where direct capacity has historically been thinner than on trunk routes. For forwarders, an additional direct rotation means more predictable lead times on China–Java cargo and an extra scheduling option when consolidating across North and South China origins.

The inclusion of Singapore in the rotation also preserves transshipment flexibility, allowing cargo to connect onward through OOCL's wider network even if Indonesia is not the final destination.

What details are still missing?

OOCL has confirmed the planned launch date and the port rotation, but two commercially significant pieces of information remain undisclosed. The carrier has not provided details about vessel deployment — the number and size of ships on the loop — nor about service frequency, meaning weekly or fortnightly sailing patterns cannot yet be verified.

Those details will shape how much incremental capacity the service actually adds to the China–Indonesia trade, and therefore whether competing carriers on the lane face meaningful additional competition for cargo from late November 2026 onward.

Customers seeking specifics on schedules, booking windows and rates can obtain further information through their local OOCL sales representatives, the carrier said.

With the 22 November 2026 start date fixed, attention now shifts to the vessel deployment announcement, which will reveal the scale of OOCL's bet on China–Indonesia cargo demand.