Maersk stock falls as China says no to mega shipping pact

China blocked the formation of a global alliance by the world's three biggest shipping lines in a surprise move that ignored western approval of the plan and sent AP Moeller-Maersk shares tumbling the most in two years.

The Ministry of Commerce said on its website that the proposed P3 vessel-pooling accord, which also included Mediterranean Shipping and CMA CGM, would "restrict competition" on the busiest Asia-Europe routes.

"The decision does come as a surprise to us," Maersk chief executive Nils Smedegaard Andersen said in a statement from the Copenhagen-based company announcing that the plan will now be scrapped. "The partners have worked hard to address all the regulators' concerns."

Maersk and its two allies said last June that they'd agreed to establish an operational pact with the aim of reducing costs on Asia-Europe, trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific routes.

Container lines have been battling industry overcapacity after a boom in ship orders collided with the global financial crisis, triggering the worst slump in prices for the carriage of cargo since containerisation became global in the 1970s.

Shares of Maersk, the world's biggest container line, fell up to 8.7 per cent, the steepest intraday decline since May 16, 2012, and were trading around 6 per cent lower in Copenhagen. CMA CGM, based in Marseille, France, and MSC, which has its headquarters in Geneva, are both closely held.