Maersk Line has announced that Lars Michael Janssen LarsMikaelJensen is the chief executive of Asia Pacific, starting on September 1.
Previously, Jensen, then a senior executive at Maersk Line, was named CEO of the fleet operations center for the P3 alliance, which was formed by China Shipping Line, CMA Marine Group and Maersk Line. At present, P3 alliance is terminated, 2M alliance. (Maersk Line and Mediterranean Line) is in the works. In the industry's opinion, Jensen's arrival will facilitate the establishment of the 2M alliance.
As for the impact on the Chinese market, some analysts pointed out to the National Business News reporter that because there is no independent entity with the ability to execute, 2M will bring less threat and impact to China's shipping market, and the possibility of anti-monopoly review is low.
Worked in Greater China for 5 years
Jensen will take over from September 1, 2014, and will be responsible for the day-to-day management of Maersk Line's operations in Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand, with the Asia-Pacific regional headquarters in Singapore.
Thomas Berknudsen, former Asia-Pacific chief executive of Maersk Line, was appointed head of Damco Logistics in Asia on July 1.
According to public data, Danmaersk Logistics, a logistics company under the Maersk Group, lost $111 million in 2013 and another $10 million in the first quarter of 2014, the only business under the Maersk Group that lost money.
In response to the appointment, Jensen said he was looking forward to his new role in the Asia-Pacific region and wanted to diversify into emerging markets, fast-growing markets and mature markets. "This is a huge opportunity and we will work with our clients to further promote global trade and economic growth in the Asia Pacific region.”
Jensen joined Maersk Line in 1984 and has rich experience in management and industry around the world. He worked for Maersk Line in Greater China for five years, National Business Daily learned. Jensen, who was a senior executive at the time of Maersk Line, was previously appointed CEO of the future P3 Fleet Operations Center (JVOC) based in London.
Or boost the establishment of 2M alliance
On June 17, China's Ministry of Commerce rejected the P3 alliance set up by shipping companies Maersk Line, Mediterranean Line and CMA Marine.
Lu Jijian, deputy director-general of the Department of Trade in Services and commercial services at China's Ministry of Commerce, previously told a shipping forum that the P3 alliance was an attempt to exclude restricted competition in Asia, which would have more adverse than beneficial effects on market competition and was not in the interest of society. Therefore, the Ministry of Commerce said that the alliance did not meet the relevant conditions for fair competition and rejected it.
Just last month, Maersk Line again announced a strategic alliance, saying it would enter into a 10-year Vessel sharing agreement (VSA) with Mediterranean Line on Asia-Europe, trans-Atlantic and Trans-Pacific routes. The ship sharing agreement, to be called 2M, will replace all of Maersk Line's existing ship sharing and space purchase agreements on these routes.
Assuming the alliance is not vetoed by China, Jensen will head the command center, which will be responsible for setting up the alliance's organizational structure and unifying its vast container liner fleet. Jensen also believes that it is a good idea for container shipping companies to develop an alliance structure to meet customer needs. Based on this, it is believed that Jensen will push forward the establishment of the 2M alliance after his arrival.
Zhu Qinghua, a researcher of light industry at CIC Advisory, told National Business Daily that Maersk Line appointed Jensen as its Asia-Pacific CEO largely because it wants to promote the 2M alliance.
In the strategic alliance with Mediterranean shipping, China's opinion is particularly important and has a strong influence on the final outcome, according to analysts. To do this, Jensen and his team need to understand, on one hand, what the Chinese government is willing to do and what is acceptable. On the other hand, it needs to negotiate with Chinese shipping companies to reach a cooperative relationship.
Previously, some industry insiders pointed out that because the scale of the 2M alliance has been lower than the red Line, it has a higher chance of passing the antitrust review of the Ministry of Commerce. However, it is worth noting that once 2M alliance is passed, it will form competitive pressure on Chinese shipping enterprises.
Recently, Shang Ming, director of the anti-monopoly Bureau of the Ministry of Commerce, in an interview with CCTV, on whether 2M alliance will form a new monopoly expressed concern.
Maersk Line and Mediterranean Line have a combined share of 27.9% of the global container market. In Asia, the share is even bigger, with 35.8 per cent.
Zhang Shouguo, secretary-general of the China Shippers Association, also said in an interview with China Central Television that the cooperation will further enhance the competitiveness of Maersk Line and Mediterranean Shipping, which should be a big challenge for Chinese shipping companies.
Zhang Yongfeng, director of the international Shipping Research office of the Shanghai International Shipping Research Center, told reporters that whether Maersk's strategic alliance with the Mediterranean will eventually be recognized by the Chinese side depends on the agreement. "Depending on whether the agreement involves information sharing, joint price hikes, pure VSA should not be a problem.”
“The 2M alliance is more likely to be realized, its market share is much smaller than P3 alliance, and there is no independent entity with executive ability and jointly owned, so it will bring less threat and impact to China's shipping market, and it will be less likely to face anti-monopoly review." Zhu Qinghua said.
