Company profile · Logistics and shipping
COSCO Shipping Logistics
中远海运物流有限公司
COSCO Shipping Logistics is the integrated logistics arm of China COSCO Shipping, the world's largest shipping group by fleet; for a foreign shipper it means freight forwarding, terminals and supply-chain services tied to the carrier's own vessels and port network.
Key facts
Overview
COSCO Shipping Logistics was formed in 2016 when China Ocean Shipping (COSCO) and China Shipping merged into China COSCO Shipping Corporation and their logistics units were combined. It sits inside a group that operates one of the world's largest container fleets, a network of container terminals in China and abroad (COSCO Shipping Ports), and bulk, tanker and specialised shipping. The logistics company provides sea, air and rail freight forwarding, customs brokerage, project cargo, contract logistics and cross-border e-commerce logistics, and is the group's interface to shippers who want door-to-door service rather than a slot on a vessel.
The company's history reaches back to COSCO's founding in 1961 as China's state shipping line and to China Shipping's creation in 1997; the 2016 merger created a group with a global terminal network — including Piraeus in Greece, acquired in 2016 — that underpins the Belt and Road Initiative's maritime routes.
Market position
One of the two or three largest integrated logistics providers in China and the only one with a top-tier container carrier and a global terminal operator in the same group. Its strength is on ocean routes and at the ports the group owns; inland and air-freight coverage is broad but less differentiated.
Key strengths
- Space and rate access on COSCO Shipping and OOCL vessels
- Terminal operations in the major Chinese ports and at Piraeus, Abu Dhabi and other overseas hubs
- Project and heavy-lift logistics for infrastructure and energy cargo
- Multimodal sea–rail services on Belt and Road corridors
- Cross-border e-commerce logistics with bonded warehousing
What the company does
Freight forwarding
- Ocean freight (FCL and LCL)
- Air freight
- China–Europe rail coordination
- Customs brokerage and trade documentation
Terminal and port services
- Container terminal operations
- Bulk cargo handling
- Port logistics and stevedoring
Supply-chain solutions
- Contract logistics and warehousing
- Procurement and production logistics
- Cross-border e-commerce fulfilment
- Supply-chain finance
Project logistics
- Heavy-lift and out-of-gauge cargo
- Energy and infrastructure projects
- Multimodal door-to-door transport
Present in about 50 countries. Regions: China, Southeast Asia, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Americas. Group terminal network spans China, Piraeus, Abu Dhabi, Peru (Chancay) and other ports.
For a foreign counterparty
- Integrated with the carrier
- Guaranteed space allocation and competitive ocean rates through the group's own vessels, and end-to-end control from origin to a group-operated terminal.
- Terminal network
- Handling at group terminals reduces transshipment friction and gives visibility at the port.
- Belt and Road corridors
- Established sea–rail and port products on the routes where Chinese trade is growing fastest.
Considerations
- Ocean-centric
- Air freight and inland distribution are less differentiated than ocean and terminal services; shippers with air-heavy flows compare alternatives.
- State ownership
- As a state-owned group COSCO Shipping is subject to political scrutiny in some markets, including US port-fee and sanctions debates on Chinese shipping; counterparties should check current measures.
- Scale over customisation
- Standardised processes suit large volumes better than bespoke small-shipper needs.
Milestones
- 1961 — COSCO founded as China's state ocean shipping company
- 1997 — China Shipping Group established
- 2016-02 — COSCO and China Shipping merge into China COSCO Shipping; logistics units combined
- 2016 — Group takes majority control of Piraeus Port Authority, Greece
- 2018 — Group completes acquisition of Orient Overseas (OOCL)
- 2024 — Chancay port in Peru, a group-invested terminal, opens
Official site: logistics.coscoshipping.com
Frequently asked questions
Other companies in logistics and shipping: Sinotrans
Sources
- COSCO Shipping Logistics — company profile — COSCO Shipping Logistics (retrieved 6 September 2026)
- COSCO Shipping Holdings annual report 2024 — COSCO Shipping Holdings (retrieved 6 September 2026)
- China COSCO Shipping Corporation — group overview — China COSCO Shipping (retrieved 6 September 2026)
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