Matson to carry rival's freight

Advertiser Staff and News Services

Matson Navigation Co. will begin to regularly carry some freight to Hawai'i next month for competitor CSX Lines LLC, a top corporate executive said today.

In a conference call with investors to discuss second-quarter earnings, W. Allen Doane, president and chief executive officer of Matson's parent Alexander & Baldwin Inc., said Matson will carry CSX freight "on a regular basis" from California ports.

He said the companies reached the agreement recently, which he called positive for Matson, which has seen lower profits during this year's economic slowdown.

The companies have agreed in the past to place freight on the other's vessels during capacity limits, said Matson spokesman Jeff Hull.

CSX Lines officials were not immediately available for comment. CSX recently has begun promoting Internet commerce, with a new Web site that allows customers to sign up to ship their automobiles via CSX containers.