CAI International

Mitsubishi HC Capital buys CAI International

US-based container lessors CAI International and Beacon Intermodal Leasing have come under the same ownership, after Japanese leasing group Mitsubishi HC Capital acquired CAI for US$1.1 billion on 18 June.

Mitsubishi HC Capital was formed from the merger of Mitsubishi UFJ Lease & Finance and Hitachi Capital on 1 April. Beacon Intermodal was acquired in 2014 by Mitsubishi UFJ Lease & Finance, marking the company’s entry into the container leasing market.

The increased container demand has led...

https://container-news.com/mitsubishi-hc-capital-buys-cai-international/

How three Chinese companies cornered global container production

containers

Never before has the humble ocean shipping container been this important to American business. If you can’t get one, you can’t move your international cargo — and supply has never been tighter. The cost of global trade is now contingent on how many containers exist, where they are and where they aren’t.

How many containers exist is controlled by China. Virtually every ocean shipping container in the world is built there. 

Just three Chinese companies account for the majority of production, with...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/how-three-chinese-companies-cornered-global-container-production

No relief: Global container shortage likely to last until 2022

container

The world simply does not have enough containers to handle cargo demand. It’s a conundrum that has persisted for so long that the mainstream press is finally covering it.  

The New York Times reported Friday how the box shortfall is contributing to inflation: “Demand … has outstripped the availability of containers,” while the U.S. pandemic situation has eased to the point where retailers can pass along higher transport costs to consumers without being accused of price gouging — and “the cost of...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/no-relief-global-container-shortage-likely-to-last-until-2022

Chinese factories won’t build enough containers to save US shippers

containers

There are still not enough containers in the right places to carry the world’s cargoes. The hope was that Chinese container factories would shift into ultra-high gear — that the industry would build its way out of the equipment crisis.

It hasn’t happened.

In fact, Chinese factories are intentionally not going into their highest gear, according to Tim Page, interim president and CEO of container-equipment lessor CAI International (NYSE: CAI). Instead, they are managing output to keep prices high.

Th...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/chinese-factories-wont-build-enough-containers-to-save-us-shippers

‘Blue wave’ stimulus could spur import surge on top of surge

capitol hill stimulus

Could today’s unprecedented boom in containerized imports just keep going year-round? Right through Chinese New Year in February? Through the second quarter, then the fall peak — and all the way into 2022? Could the already overwhelmed global trade network stay stuck at its ceiling until next year?

With COVID hospitalizations at record highs, almost 4,000 U.S. deaths per day and vaccine distribution slow out of the gate, a full-year boom scenario may sound implausible. But it just got more...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/blue-wave-stimulus-could-spur-container-surge-on-top-of-surge

Liner capacity control and the future of container shipping

container ship future

The world’s container liner business is now so consolidated that it can deftly match vessel capacity to cargo demand. This change — courtesy of mergers and alliances — is structural, not cyclical. If there’s a single thesis for container shipping in 2020, that is it.

Assuming it’s true, there could be major future implications for the cargo shippers, yards, box-equipment owners and ship lessors who do business with liners.

If liners can indefinitely calibrate capacity to cargo demand, the future...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/liner-capacity-control-and-the-future-of-container-shipping

CAI International sells railcar fleet to Infinity Transportation

A photograph of two railcars on a train track.

Container operator and transportation finance company CAI International is selling its remaining railcar fleet to Infinity Transportation, a transportation lessor and Global Atlantic Group subsidiary, so that it can concentrate on its container leasing business.

Infinity will buy the assets for $228.7 million in a deal that will close by Dec. 31.

“The sale of our remaining railcar fleet is an important milestone, as exiting the rail business allows us to execute our strategy of maximizing...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/cai-international-sells-railcar-fleet-to-infinity-transportation

Containers are ‘the new gold’ amid ‘black swan’ box squeeze

containers

“It seems like containers are the new gold these days,” marveled Nerijus Poskus, global head of ocean freight at Flexport.

“Container availability in Asia is extremely limited right now,” added Flexport Head of North American Ocean Freight Jan Hinz during a company webinar on Tuesday. “It’s causing a lot of hardship for our customers and the shipping industry as a whole.

“We have heard anecdotal reports out of Asia that some ships are sailing with open slots simply because there is no equipment —...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/containers-are-the-new-gold-amid-black-swan-box-squeeze

Mounting evidence that container spike could last into 2021

container

Bullish news on container shipping keeps pouring in, implying demand strength through February 2021 — if not longer.

The latest green light comes from container-equipment lessor Triton International (NYSE: TRTN). Triton, the largest player in its sector, reported Q3 2020 results Friday and described Q4 2020 demand for equipment as “exceptionally strong.”

Ocean carriers generally lease more than half their boxes from companies like Triton. The carriers’ forward visibility on shipper demand drives...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/mounting-evidence-that-container-spike-could-last-into-2021

Chinese container factories are now sold out until February

container

Watch the containers to see which way the economic winds will blow. How many are ordered, for when and for how much. And if you do, you’ll see that box demand is strong — not just through year-end, but into 2021. 

Three of the largest container-equipment lessors — Triton (NYSE: TRTN), Textainer (NYSE: TGH) and CAI International (CAI) — conducted virtual presentations for institutional investors over the past week, hosted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW). Notes on those presentations provided to...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/chinese-container-factories-sold-out-until-february

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