CMA CGM said to be in talks to buy NOL

© Khunaspix Dreamstime.

Possibly monumental, if it proves to be true – the French shipping line is said to be undertaking due diligence having made a preliminary offer for Singapore shipping line, which is 67% owned by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, Temasek Holdings, and the remainder floated on the local stock exchange. Such a takeover would cement CMA CGM’s position as the third-largest shipping line, with a likely 13% market share. And to think it is less than five years since CMA CGM was standing on the brink of an abyss and had to be saved from ruin by Turkish port operator Robert Yildirim, while NOL was lining up to buy Hapag-Lloyd. How times have changed…