Idan Ofer: Zim Integrated Shipping Services will be listed in Hong Kong

The container line hopes to raise more than $500m through an initial public offering. Zim has been aggressively expanding capacity and service coverage
 
Israel's Zim Integrated Shipping Services is set to be the first foreign-based shipowner to list in Hong Kong.
 
At a conference held last week Israel Corp chairman, Idan Ofer, said that: "We have decided to list Zim on the Hong Kong stock exchange, and I would advise many Israeli companies to do the same".
 
Zim is understood to be aiming to float its shares before the end of the year. The container line hopes to raise more than $500m through an initial public offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, an industry source close to the company told Lloyd’s List. Ofer's statement was made during the visit of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange chairman Ronald Arculli
 
Zim which ranks number 15 in the world, operates a fleet of about 100 vessels totalling 240,000 TEU, but has been aggressively expanding capacity and service coverage. Eight 10,000 teu and four 8,200 teu boxships are already in the pipeline, while a further nine 12,600 teu were ordered last year. The newbuildings will be delivered between 2012 and 2013, with the company expecting to receive delivery of the first TEU 10,000 vessel later this year.