It was some time, however, before NYK enjoyed the fruits of this strategic change. The 1950s were a difficult time for all Japanese shipping companies, and NYK operated without profit from 1956 to 1965. Two forms of financial consolidation emerged in the 1960s. First, the government encouraged consolidation in the industry, linking a policy of merger with a commitment to increased subsidization. Under this process, six groups emerged to constitute the core of the industry. NYK merged with Mitsubishi Kaiun KK, a former division within Mitsubishi Corporation, while rivals OSK and Mitsui Senpaku joined to form Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. The second form of consolidation was technological. The government aided the shift to containerization by aiding firms that formed cooperative container groupings known as the space charter system. This was particularly effective on the Pacific. Earlier, NYK had worked with the Matson Navigation Company of San Francisco to introduce containers, and on the European line, along with Mitsui O.S.K., it established a container consortium with British and German firms called the Trio Group.