Will Maersk Line acquire HMM
There are rumours among observers that the market leader Maersk Line is planning to acquire South Korea’s shipping major Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM).
Neither company has commented on the matter. Both companies were tight-lipped today on merger talk.
According to a Reuters report, Maersk itself hasn't made a major acquisition for more than a decade but says it might be open to "the right opportunity", although doubters believe such deals risk accumulating ships without securing enough customers.
Jakob Stausholm, Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer at Maersk Line, said: "If the right opportunity is there we will look into it. If you look at the history of Maersk Line, we have achieved our leadership position by combination of organic growth and acquisitions. It's really tough and everybody in the industry is really suffering, and so have we. We are defending our leadership position. If we are strong, there is no reason for us not to grow.”
However, Maersk Line has confirmed that they are in discussions with HMM on the possibility of HMM joining the 2M vessel sharing agreement (2M VSA) when their membership of the G6 alliance expires in 2017.
The 2M alliance comprises Maersk Line, the A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S shipping unit, and Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC).
But a section of market observers believe that Maersk seems to regard HMM as object of acquisition in 2020 not its alliance partner.
