The idled fleet of container vessels of more than 500 teu in the first nine months of the year averaged 310,000 teu, and the idle fleet this year thus reached the lowest level since 2011.

But the positive numbers help hide a massive oversupply of vessels in the container market, according to analyst agency Alphaliner, which stresses that five market developments in particular have absorbed a big part of the excessive capacity and have thus created a false impression of supply in the market.