In the years to come, many container shipping chief executives will rue the events of 2007. Throughout the year, when container volumes between Asia and Europe surged by nearly 20 per cent a year and ships were constantly full, shipping lines ordered vast numbers of vessels from shipyards to cope with what was expected to be years of continued rapid growth.

The zenith came over the summer, when every few days produced an announcement that one of the world’s leading lines had ordered a fleet of vast new ships – usually eight or so in a go – for around $165m each. Total container ship orders for the year were worth $51.2bn, by the calculation of AXS-Alphaliner, a Paris-based consultancy.