Hapag-Lloyd have announced that the company will buy Israeli ZIM Integrated Shipping Services for $4.2 billion prompting ZIM employees to take immediate industrial action.
Reuters reported that that the deal that would secure the Hamburg-headquartered company’s position as the fifth-largest shipping line in the world with a modern fleet of over 400 vessels. The Times of Israel said that following media reports of the sale, Zim’s workers’ union suspended all activities at the company’s Haifa-headquarters as the company’s management started talks with union to avert any “negative impact on the company’s ongoing operations”.
With ZIM operations in more than 90 countries serving 300 ports worldwide, JP Morgan analysts said a deal would allow Hapag-Lloyd to grow its global market share from 7% to just under 9%.