Maersk will remove Shanghai from its Dragon service as part of a revised Asia-Oceania rotation taking effect later this month.
The updated proforma will begin with the ONE San Diego voyage 634S, which is scheduled to depart Qingdao on 21 August 2026 and arrive in Sydney on 15 September.
Under the new rotation, the service will call at Qingdao, Ningbo, Hong Kong, Yantian, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane before returning to Qingdao. Shanghai will no longer form part of the loop.
The change follows the launch of Maersk’s dedicated Qilin service, which connects Shanghai with Sydney and Melbourne. The carrier will therefore separate the Shanghai calls from the wider Dragon rotation.
Exports moving from Brisbane to Shanghai will remain connected through transhipment. Maersk said cargo will be routed through either Hong Kong or Tanjung Pelepas, depending on customer requirements.
READ: Maersk skips Shanghai call on Ningbo service amid weather
Alongside the removal of Shanghai, Maersk will change the scheduled port windows at Ningbo, Hong Kong and Yantian. The carrier said the revisions are intended to improve schedule reliability and reduce the effects of weather-related and terminal disruption on the service.
Under the revised timetable, the vessel will arrive at Ningbo at 08:00 on Friday and depart at 20:00 the same day. It will then reach Hong Kong at 07:00 on Monday, with departure set for 22:00.
The Yantian call is scheduled from 07:00 on Tuesday until 06:00 on Wednesday. In Australia, the service is expected to arrive in Sydney at 14:00 on Tuesday and depart at 14:00 on Thursday.
The Melbourne window will run from 23:00 on Saturday to 17:30 on Monday. The vessel will then call at Brisbane from 06:00 on Friday until 03:00 on Sunday before returning to Qingdao.
Qingdao remains the starting and final port in the revised rotation. The published proforma lists arrival at 10:00 on Friday and departure at 18:00 on Saturday.
READ: Maersk flags Kenya’s new mandatory cargo declaration
The operational change affects the structure and port timings of the Dragon service rather than removing Shanghai-Australia coverage from Maersk’s network. Shanghai, Sydney and Melbourne will instead be served through the separate Qilin product, while the remaining Dragon calls continue under the adjusted schedule.
The revised sequence keeps all four Asian calls ahead of the southbound passage to Australia. Sydney remains the first Australian port, followed by Melbourne and Brisbane. The return leg then brings the service back to Qingdao, completing the published rotation.
For more information:
Maersk – https://www.maersk.com/
