Container Fleet Market Size, Share and Trends 2026 to 2035

Revenue, 2025

USD 14.12 Bn

Forecast Year, 2035

USD 24.26 Bn

CAGR, 2026 - 2035

5.56%

Report Coverage

Global

What is Container Fleet Market Size?

The global container fleet market size was calculated at USD 14.12 billion in 2025 and is predicted to increase from USD 14.92 billion in 2026 to approximately USD 24.26 billion by 2035, expanding at a CAGR of 5.56% from 2026 to 2035

Market Highlights

• Asia Pacific held the dominant share of the container fleet market in 2025.
• North America is observed to expand at a rapid pace during the forecast period.
• By type, the dry container segment accounted for the dominating share in 2025.
• By type, the reefer container segment is expected to witness a significant share during the forecast period.
• By application, the oil and gas segment held the largest share of the container fleet market in 2025.
• By application, the food segment is expected to grow fastest during the forecast period.

What is the Container Fleet?

A container fleet refers to a collection of standardized containers used for shipping goods by sea. The container fleet plays a crucial role in global trade and allows the efficient movement of goods between producers and consumers worldwide. These containers are generally made of steel, come in standardized sizes, and enable seamless transporting of goods. Container fleet finds various applications in mining and minerals, automotive, oil, gas, and chemicals, food and agriculture, retail, and other industries. The market is experiencing the rising use of fleet management techniques to reduce risk, track the fleet, improve operational productivity, and control expenses.

• According to the data published in ITCO's 2023 Global Tank Container Fleet Survey, the International Tank Container Organisation has published its 11th Annual Tank Container Fleet Survey. The survey estimated that on 1 January 2023, the global tank container fleet had reached 801,800 units worldwide, compared to 737,935 on 1 January 2022, a year-on-year growth of 8.65%.
• According to this year's ITCO Survey, a total of 67,865 tank containers were built in 2022, compared to 53,285 new units in 2021- an increase of some 14,580 units.
• According to Niels Rasmussen, Chief Shipping Analyst at BIMCO, in 2023, shipyards delivered 350 new container ships with a total capacity of 2.2 million TEU, beating the previous record from 2015 when 1.7 million TEU was delivered. In 2024, 478 container ships with a capacity of 3.1 million TEU are scheduled for delivery, beating the 2023 record by 41%.

How is AI contributing to the Container Fleet Industry?

The intelligent yard planning, predictive equipment maintenance, and real-time visibility transform container fleets with the help of Artificial intelligence. It enhances the routing performance, automated crane safety, load planning, and damage detection. All these capabilities ensure that delays, fuel consumption, and uncertainty in operations are minimised in multidimensional logistics networks.

Container Fleet Market Growth Factors

• The rapid globalization, rapid industrialization, and economic growth in emerging markets are observed to promote the market's growth in the coming years.
• The rapid infrastructure development at ports and the prevailing trends in containerization worldwide are majorly boosting the container fleet market's expansion during the forecast period.
• The growing activities of automotive, mining & minerals, chemicals, agriculture, food, and Oil & Gas industries are expected to accelerate the market's revenue in the coming years.
• The increase in the use of high-capacity vessels or ships reduces the cost of containers as it assists in storing more containers at a time, which is anticipated to drive the market's growth.
• The rising global reliance on reefer cargo shipping for perishable food products is projected to fuel the container fleet market during the forecast period.
• Technological innovations including automation in port operations, containers equipped with IoT sensors, and rapid advancements in ship design for better fuel efficiency, are likely to support the market's growth during the forecast period.

Market Outlook

• Growth in the Industry: Containerized trade is stable, but the introduction of additional capacity puts pressure on utilization and freight stability.
• Sustainability Trends: Fleets are focusing on decarbonizing with alternative fuels, dual engines, and regulatory initiatives.
• Key Investors: MSC Maersk, CMA CGM, COSCO Shipping, Hapag Lloyd grow the fleet and terminals on an aggressive basis.

Market Scope

Market Dynamics

Drivers

Rapid growth in global trade

The expansion of global trade is expected to propel the growth of the container fleet market during the forecast period. The rise in international trade volumes driven by globalization, economic growth, and the robust growth of e-commerce is anticipated to accelerate the demand for containerized shipping services. The rise of trade agreements between different countries, which require reliable shipping solutions to transport goods across borders is also likely to stimulate the growth of container fleet activities. Containerization can standardize cargo transport and enable seamless handling across various modes of transportation. In addition, the tank container industry has grown significantly to the rising global demand for bulk liquid and liquified gas transport.

Restraint

High cost

The high cost is projected to hamper the growth of the container fleet market. The high capital investment involved with these containers often results in lower export and import activities. The high cost is involved in manufacturing, maintaining, and upgrading shipping containers. In addition, stringent government regulations are likely to limit the expansion of the global container fleet market during the forecast period.

Opportunity

Advancement in technology

The continuous advancements in technology are projected to offer a lucrative opportunity for the growth of the container fleet market during the forecast period. Ensuring containers are in the right place at the right time to meet customer demands and optimizing routes to minimize empty container movements increases the need to deploy advanced technology including GPS tracking, smart IoT sensors, and data analytics, which has significantly assisted in effective management of container fleets, and facilitating firms to track containers in real-time, improving safety, predict maintenance needs, and optimize routes.

• Moreover, the rapid adoption of technology helps to improve fuel efficiency and reduce emissions as well as ensuring the seamless flow of goods in global trade with reduced costs for both shipping companies and their customers. Thereby, driving the growth of the container fleet market.
• In April 2024, Hapag-Lloyd announced the launch of real-time container tracking on most of its nearly 3 million-strong fleet, becoming the first container shipping line to introduce a fleet-wide dry container tracking product. With “Live Position”, Hapag-Lloyd customers can now track their shipments from their origin until arrival at the destination.

Segment Insights

Type Insights

The dry containers segment accounted for the dominating share in the container fleet market in 2025. Dry container is a freight container that is enclosed and weatherproof, with a rigid roof, side walls, and floor. It is well suited for the transport of a large variation of cargoes. Dry containers facilitate the transportation of a wide range of dry cargo which includes electronics, textiles, and manufactured goods. Dry containers are most commonly used to transport different types of dry goods and they are packed in cartons, cases, bags, boxes, bales, pallets, and others.

• In November 2022, ORBCOMM Inc., a global provider of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, announced that it is leveraging its latest telematics technology to provide end-to-end monitoring for dry marine containers moving through complex supply chains around the world. ORBCOMM's new CT 1000 solution, which is expected to be commercially available in early 2023, digitalizes global container shipping, providing visibility and traceability for shipping lines and their customers so they can turn real-time data into decisions about their maritime operations.

The reefer containers segment is expected to witness a significant share during the forecast period. Reefer containers are ideal and are used for goods that require to be temperature-controlled during shipping. Reefer containers are equipped with an advanced refrigeration unit that is connected to the power supply on board the ship. All standard reefer containers are built to maintain a temperature between +25° C and -25° C for chilled and frozen cargo. Fresh fruits and vegetables, milk and dairy products, meat, fish (frozen or fresh), pharmaceuticals, juice, chocolate, and others are most commonly transported in refrigerated containers. They are engineered to maintain the humidity, temperature, and atmosphere of the container at a constant value during the whole transit period. Such factors boost the segment's growth.

• In February 2024, WEC Lines enters the refrigerated container market by adding 45ft reefer containers to its container fleet. WEC Lines is entering the refrigerated container market by adding the first batch of 50 brand new 45ft High-Cube Pallet-Wide refrigerated container (reefer) units to its extensive container fleet, solidifying its commitment towards providing comprehensive transport solutions to meet client demand. The carrier says the demand for reefer containers has been rising steadily across various industries, including food & beverage, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare, driven by the need for reliable and secure transport of temperature-sensitive goods.

Application Insights

The oil and gas segment held the largest share of the container fleet market in 2025 owing to the increasing applications of the oil and gas industry. Containers are extensively used for transporting oil and gases across cross border. Specialized tank containers are used for transporting expensive chemicals, liquid petroleum products, and gases safely across different regions. On the other hand, the food segment is expected to grow fastest during the forecast period. Containers are employed for transporting perishable and non-perishable food products such as vegetables, fruits, meat, poultry,seafood, grains, beverages, packaged goods, and dairy products. Reefer containers are best suited for transporting food products as it is designed to maintain consistent temperature and humidity levels to preserve the freshness and quality of food products throughout the journey.

Regional Insights

Asia Pacific held the dominant share of the container fleet market in 2025. The region is observed to witness prolific growth during the forecast period. Factors such as rapid infrastructure development at ports, increasing demand for cargo transportation, globalization of supply chains, stringent rules and reforms of government associations about shipment procedures, the introduction of larger vessels and mega container ships, technological innovation, high demand for intermodal transportation, and economic growth in emerging markets are expected to contribute towards the growth of the market in the region.

The rise in refrigerated cargo containers is anticipated to boost the growth of the container fleet market in the region due to the increasing demand for transporting fruits, meat, medicines, and fresh vegetables, as well as maintaining their temperature to reduce the risk of damage. Additionally, the rising industrial activities have enhanced significant operations across retail, oil and chemicals, automobile, agriculture, mining, and other industries, which has propelled the demand for the container fleet.

North America is observed to expand at a rapid pace during the forecast period. The growth of the region is attributed to the rise in global trade, increasing investment in infrastructure development, rapid urbanization, adoption of advanced technology, an increase in intermodal freight transportation, and growing demand for refrigerated sea transportation. The United States and Canada are the economic powerhouses of the region. The rising activities of the automotive and oil and gas sectors usually have a high dependency on containerized transportation for facilitating smooth international and domestic trade.

• In May 2024, the Chinese Shipper announced the launch of an All-Electric Container Vessel with a 50MWh battery. The world's biggest electric container ship is about to go into service between Shanghai and Nanjing, China, powered by a mammoth 50 megawatt-hour battery.

What Are the Driving Factors of the Container Fleet Market in Europe?

Europe is expected to grow at a significant rate during the forecast period. The volume of redirected exports is taken up by Europe, which is conducive to robust container flows and terminal utilization. Drive activity in rebuilding inventory and eco transport. Ports handle increased throughput, and operators are focused on sustainable, aligned logistics and fleet efficiency over regional trade routes.

Germany Container Fleet Market Trends:

Under the European regulations, Germany focuses on compliance with emissions and cleaner fleets. Short sea feeder ships become significant. There is a rise in demand for specialized containers that aid automotive and machinery exports, which demand high-reliability transport and temperature-controlled transportation.

China Container Fleet Market Trends:

China is the largest owner of the fleet and a shipbuilder, and exports are in a diversified global market. The use of green vessels increases with the automation of ports. Smart endpoints enhance processing performance as the state-owned carriers increase capacity to sustain export impetus.

U.S. Container Fleet Market Trends:

Unstable container traffic is reported in the U.S. when there is a tariff on anticipated and inventory plans. The use of alternative gateways by shippers is on the increase. There is an increase in demand for smart containers that enhance visibility, and the regulations on the origins of container materials are increasing.

Value Chain Analysis of the Container Fleet Market

• Infrastructure Development: The optimization of ports, roads, rail, and warehouses to reduce congestion handling costs and enhance the network speed.
  Key Players: Adani Ports, DP World, GMR Group, NHAI
• Warehousing and Inventory Management: Efficacy of the storage flows that help reduce the waste carrying costs enhances availability.
  Key players: DHL Supply Chain, FedEx, Safexpress, ESR, IndoSpace, Allcargo Logistics
• Last-Mile Delivery Services: Improving the speed of final delivery, reliability, reducing costs, and improving customer satisfaction.
  Key players: Delhivery, Ecom Express, Blue Dart, Xpressbees, Shadowfax, Ekart Logistics
• Logistics Tech and Platform Development: Implementation of digital automation that enhances visibility and efficiency, and minimizes administrative delays.
  Key players: Oracle, SAP, Blue Yonder, WiseTech Global, LogiNext,project44
• Regulatory Compliance and Customs Clearance: the simplification of document processes, reducing the duration of downtime, and ensuring smooth cross-border clearance.
  Key players: DHL Express, Kuehne + Nagel, DSV, DB Schenker, Maersk

Top Container Fleet Market Companies and their Offerings

• COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited: Manages a large fleet of vessels in the world that encompasses integrated shipping logistics throughout key commerce routes.
• CMA CGM S.A.: Offers a contemporary diversified container fleet comprising reefers that facilitates world trade with end-to-end services.
• Evergreen Marine Corporation.: Operates an extensive contemporary fleet to provide credible global container delivery by an effective planned logistics system.

Segments Covered in the Report

By Type

• Dry Container
• Reefer Container
• Tank Container
• Special Container

By Application

• Automotive
• Oil and Gas
• Food
• Mining and Minerals
• Agriculture
• Others

By Geography

• North America
• Asia Pacific
• Europe
• Latin America
• Middle East & Africa