July 2026 Ocean Shipping Insights: Top Routes & Carriers
Discover the key ocean shipping trends from July 2026 with ShipsGo data. Explore the most tracked routes and carriers, average transit times, and direct vs. transshipment service patterns across global trade lanes.
July 2026 data from ShipsGo highlights the most tracked ocean shipping routes and carriers, revealing key trends in route popularity, transit times, and direct vs. transshipment services.
Top 10 Most Tracked Ocean Routes in July 2026
| Rank | Route | Share | Direct | Transshipment | Avg. Transit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Port Elizabeth → Rotterdam | 1.7% | 90.6% | 9.4% | 25 days |
| 2 | Aliaga (Izmir) → Felixstowe | 0.9% | 100% | 0% | 11 days |
| 3 | Valparaiso → Philadelphia | 0.8% | 13.7% | 86.3% | 20 days |
| 4 | Aliaga (Izmir) → Antwerp | 0.6% | 100% | 0% | 21 days |
| 5 | Port Elizabeth → Livorno | 0.6% | 0% | 100% | 29 days |
| 6 | Shanghai → Lazaro Cardenas | 0.6% | 98.2% | 1.8% | 23 days |
| 7 | Istanbul (Ambarli) → Alexandria | 0.6% | 100% | 0% | 6 days |
| 8 | Shanghai → Manzanillo | 0.6% | 97.5% | 2.5% | 21 days |
| 9 | Aliaga (Izmir) → Valencia | 0.6% | 97.5% | 2.5% | 9 days |
| 10 | Istanbul (Ambarli) → Felixstowe | 0.5% | 100% | 0% | 15 days |
Route Highlights
🏆 Most tracked route: Port Elizabeth → Rotterdam — 1.7%
⚡ Fastest route: Istanbul (Ambarli) → Alexandria — 6 days
🔄 Highest transshipment ratio: Port Elizabeth → Livorno — 100%
🚢 Highest direct-service routes: Aliaga → Felixstowe, Aliaga → Antwerp, Istanbul → Alexandria and Istanbul → Felixstowe — 100% direct
Europe-Africa and Mediterranean Connections Stand Out
The July rankings show a strong presence of routes connecting South Africa, Türkiye and Mediterranean ports with Northern and Southern Europe.
Port Elizabeth → Rotterdam was the most tracked route, representing 1.7% of tracked routes. Meanwhile, three Türkiye-Europe connections appeared in the top 10, linking Aliaga and Istanbul with Felixstowe, Antwerp and Valencia.
This highlights the continued importance of Mediterranean and European gateway ports in connecting regional cargo flows with major European markets.
Top 10 Ocean Carriers in July 2026
| Rank | Carrier | Share | Direct | Transshipment |
| 1 | MSC | 18.0% | 65.4% | 34.6% |
| 2 | CMA CGM | 15.1% | 81.3% | 18.8% |
| 3 | Maersk Line | 13.5% | 56.2% | 43.8% |
| 4 | Hapag-Lloyd | 11.9% | 66.9% | 33.1% |
| 5 | COSCO | 6.8% | 87.1% | 12.9% |
| 6 | ONE Line | 4.8% | 75.8% | 24.2% |
| 7 | OOCL | 3.9% | 85.7% | 14.3% |
| 8 | Arkas Line | 3.2% | 95.5% | 4.5% |
| 9 | ZIM Line | 2.6% | 84.4% | 15.6% |
| 10 | Evergreen | 2.5% | 83.4% | 16.6% |
Carrier Highlights
🥇 Top carrier: MSC — 18.0% share
🥈 Second: CMA CGM — 15.1%
🥉 Third: Maersk Line — 13.5%
📈 Highest direct-service ratio: Arkas Line — 95.5%
MSC Maintains the Lead
MSC ranked first with an 18.0% share, followed by CMA CGM at 15.1% and Maersk Line at 13.5%.
Together, these three carriers accounted for almost half of the carrier share in the July dataset, underlining the continued concentration of global container shipping among the largest ocean carriers.
The service mix, however, differs between carriers. Maersk recorded the highest transshipment share among the top three at 43.8%, compared with 34.6% for MSC and 18.8% for CMA CGM.
What July's Data Tells Us About Ocean Shipping
The July figures point to three broader trends:
1. Direct connectivity remains strong on several key regional routes.
Türkiye-Europe routes in particular showed very high direct-service ratios.
2. Transshipment continues to connect less directly served markets.
Routes such as Valparaiso → Philadelphia demonstrate how hub-and-spoke networks remain an important part of global container shipping.
3. Transit time varies significantly between trade lanes.
The difference between a 6-day and a 29-day average transit time shows why understanding the actual service structure behind a route is important when planning shipments.
As global shipping networks continue to adapt to changing trade patterns, port congestion, vessel schedules, and network changes, route-level tracking data can provide valuable insight into how cargo is actually moving.
Track Your Ocean Shipments with ShipsGo
Route statistics provide the bigger picture, but shipment-level visibility helps logistics teams understand what is happening to individual containers.
With ShipsGo Ocean Container Tracking, shippers and freight forwarders can monitor container movements, shipment milestones, and estimated arrival information in one place.
For companies looking to connect shipment visibility with their own logistics systems, ShipsGo API provides programmatic access to tracking data.
Stay tuned for more monthly ShipsGo shipping insights as we continue to analyze global ocean freight movements.
Source: ShipsGo July 2026 tracking data.
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