Competition in Peru’s maritime sector is intensifying as global shipping giants accelerate direct links between China and the South American nation following the inauguration of Cosco Shipping’s large-scale port in Chancay.
MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company has introduced a new weekly direct service connecting Ningbo, China, to Callao, Peru’s main port near Lima. The move comes a year after Cosco opened its US$1.3 billion deep-water port in Chancay, enabling the Chinese operator to launch its own weekly direct route to Shanghai.
MSC, the world’s largest container shipping line, and Cosco, the fourth-biggest, now offer complementary routes: MSC’s service brings cargo to Peru in 23 days, while Cosco’s line connects Peru to China in just 21 days. These faster transit times reflect the growing strength of bilateral trade, with China serving as Peru’s top trading partner and a major buyer of its copper exports, while Peruvian imports of Chinese goods continue to rise.
Previously, shipments from China to Peru typically arrived only after stopping at larger hubs such as Mexico and then moving south through Central America, Panama and Colombia — a journey of 40 to 45 days. “Imports from China traditionally arrive in Peru after docking at a big market such as Mexico… arriving after 40 to 45 days,” said Fernando Fauche, chief commercial officer at APM Terminals Callao.
The dramatic reduction in travel times was a key promise of the Chancay port, which President Xi Jinping inaugurated during the APEC summit in Lima last year. MSC’s new service highlights how the port has triggered broader shifts in the region’s logistics landscape, prompting competing terminals to strengthen their own China links — something previously seen as commercially unviable due to Peru’s modest market size.
Located just 50 miles apart and both within easy reach of Lima, the ports of Callao and Chancay are now at the centre of a growing strategic rivalry, reshaping Pacific trade flows and drawing renewed attention from geopolitical observers, particularly in Washington.