CMA CGM has notified customers that it is terminating the vessel‑sharing agreements (VSAs) it still maintains with Hapag‑Lloyd and Maersk on India‑related routes, signalling a full break from partnerships that have long underpinned the French carrier’s Indamex and India–Europe networks. According to a Journal of Commerce report published last week, the step will see CMA CGM operate the affected loops on a purely stand‑alone basis once current service rotations wind down over the next two to three sailings. The move follows February’s launch of the Maersk‑Hapag “Gemini Cooperation,” which effectively leaves CMA CGM outside the two carriers’ future long‑haul alliance plans.
Operationally, the biggest immediate change will be on the peak‑volume Indamex corridor linking India’s west coast with US East Coast gateways such as Charleston, Savannah and Newark, as well as on smaller India–Mediterranean and India–North Europe strings. CMA CGM is expected to redeploy its own ships to preserve weekly frequencies, while Maersk and Hapag‑Lloyd will rely on Gemini or alternative slot arrangements. Forwarders say schedule integrity could wobble for a few weeks during the handover, but most do not expect a capacity crunch: new‑build tonnage keeps arriving, and carriers are still diverting vessels around the Red Sea, lengthening round voyages and absorbing excess supply.
Strategically, CMA CGM’s exit underscores how 2025’s global alliance reshuffle is rippling into India’s fast‑growing trades, prompting carriers to favour tighter control over capacity, pricing and service differentiation. Analysts note that India‑US container volumes have expanded at double‑digit rates in the past two years as manufacturers diversify away from China; with Maersk and Hapag concentrating on a shared Gemini network and THE Alliance set to lose Hapag next February, carriers such as CMA CGM, MSC and COSCO must now decide whether to deepen bilateral partnerships or run fully independent loops. Either way, Indian shippers will likely enjoy a broader menu of direct sailings—but also face more frequent network tweaks as liner strategies evolve.