China growth straining global auto shipping capacity: Liner CEO

Insight summary

• •Chinese vehicle exports have surged to over 1 million units in June and July, indicating an annualized rate exceeding 12 million vehicles.
• •Wallenius Wilhelmsen's Asia-bound fleet is fully booked, with demand surpassing available specialized car-carrier capacity.
• •Chinese-made vehicles are now highly competitive in terms of technology, quality, and price, no longer viewed as cheap products.
• •Approximately 2 to 4 million Chinese vehicles are shipped annually via containers or alternative methods due to insufficient traditional car-carrier capacity.
• •The global pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) orderbook comprises about 20-21% of the current fleet but new vessels are unlikely to arrive before 2030.
• •Higher freight and charter rates linked to China increased by roughly 80% in Q2, supporting revenue but raising operating costs.
• •Wallenius Wilhelmsen reported $361 million adjusted EBITDA in Q2, down 7% quarter-over-quarter, with a stable 2026 EBITDA forecast of $1.6 billion.