The current shipping market has seen growth from the largest companies looking to expand, potentially pushing out smaller firms.

This is according to the latest findings from Drewry, which suggest the current competition could be looking to reclaim lost market share, rather than improving the sector as a whole.

It previously reported shipping reliability was down for the third quarter in a row in Q3, while actual volumes have fallen 70 per cent since 2012.

Maersk, for example, has the largest year-on-year growth of 9.5 per cent for the most recent period - it also reduced prices by 12.2 per cent, but Drewry noted similar slashes industry wide. However, even the leading company's reliability fell, as only 79.3 per cent of services were on time, down from Q2's 82 per cent.

A spokesperson for Drewry said: "The implication is that the big boys were after market share, rather than self-preservation, even though it might have meant further destabilising [the] freight rate market, which is curious given the parlous nature of some of their finances."

The maritime consultancy did note comparisons between Q3 this year and last year should be looked at with caution, due to a lack of any prevalent peak season last year along the east-west trade routes.