Pirates seized a further ship near the Somali coast on Sunday, a German shipping company said, dpa reported.
Beluga Shipping GmbH, based in the North Sea port-city of Bremen, said it had received an emergency call during the morning from one of its break-bulk carriers in the area and this seemed to be on account of a pirate attack.
It did not state the nationality of the crew. Beluga operates a fleet of ships for specialized cargo types.
The sea lanes off East Africa are vulnerable to pirates. On Saturday, pirates seized a Singapore-flagged tanker, the York. Its captain is a German national. He contacted his home by phone Sunday.
The German Foreign Ministry said it set up a crisis team Sunday on the piracy issue.