日本三大航运集团提出计划，拟搁置该国最激烈的行业竞争之一，为它们的集装箱航运业务建立一家合资企业。此举的背景是严峻的市场条件。

　　Nippon Yusen Kaisha, Mitsui OSK Lines and K Line said that, if approved by regulators, the joint venture would operate the world’s sixth biggest ?container fleet, with about 7 per cent of global capacity.

　　日本邮船(Nippon Yusen Kaisha)、商船三井(Mitsui OSK Lines)和川崎汽船(K Line)表示，如果获得监管机构的批准，合资公司将经营世界第六大集装箱船队，约占全球总运力的7%。

　　The deal is the latest in a series of mergers involving container-shipping lines, spurred by sluggish trade growth and overcapacity that have served to create some of the worst conditions in the sector’s 60-year history.

　　这一协议是涉及集装箱航运业的一系列合并的最新发展，其推动因素是贸易增长乏力和运力过剩，给该行业造成60年历史上最糟糕的经营条件。

　　The three-way Japanese joint venture, set to be officially created on July 1 next year, is the industry’s first big deal since Hanjin Shipping, South Korea’s largest container line, in August became the first significant company in the ?sector to seek bankruptcy protection in 30 years.

　　此前韩国最大的集装箱班轮公司韩进海运(Hanjin Shipping)在今年8月成为30年来业内第一家寻求破产保护的大型公司。将于明年7月1日正式成立的三家日本航运公司的合资企业，是该事件之后该行业第一笔大型合并交易。

　　The deal comes after Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd in July announced plans to take over United Arab Shipping. Last year, France’s CMA CGM announced it was taking over Singapore’s Neptune Orient Lines, while China Cosco and China Shipping outlined plans to merge.

　　这笔交易达成之前，德国赫伯罗特(Hapag-Lloyd)今年7月宣布并购阿拉伯联合航运公司(United Arab Shipping)。去年法国达飞海运集团(CMA CGM)宣布并购新加坡东方海皇集团(Neptune Orient Lines)，而中国的中远(Cosco)和中国海运(China Shipping)介绍了合并计划。

　　All the deals have been driven by shipping lines’ efforts to create economies of scale. Analysts said there was little to disguise the defensive nature of the deal.

　　这些交易的驱动因素都是航运公司努力挖掘规模效益。分析师们表示，没有什么可以掩饰这些交易的防御性质。