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Shipping News

US proposes maritime anti-terrorism Bill
A new sweeping US maritime anti-terrorism Bill approved on Wednesday is set to impose rigorous security requirements on foreign ports, shipping lines and seafarers should it become law.
S'pore Cruise Centre to enhance security, impose new levy
Asia-South America rates to rise from April

Air and Land Transport

Rebound in int'l cargo traffic to peak next year
INTERNATIONAL air cargo traffic, an indicator of the health of the world economy and key to global trade, is likely to rebound in 2003 from a hefty decline in 2001, the airlines body Iata said.
Qantas discussing foreign ownership limit with govt
Hainan Air turns in lower profit, plans US listing
Aussie airport in chaos as traffic controllers strike
US airline stocks fall on fare wars
Bangkok Aviation sets share sale price at 60 baht
Swiss airline in alliance talks only with oneworld

web site

Shipping News

US proposes maritime anti-terrorism Bill
A new sweeping US maritime anti-terrorism Bill approved on Wednesday is set to impose rigorous security requirements on foreign ports, shipping lines and seafarers should it become law.
S'pore Cruise Centre to enhance security, impose new levy
Asia-South America rates to rise from April

Air and Land Transport

Rebound in int'l cargo traffic to peak next year
INTERNATIONAL air cargo traffic, an indicator of the health of the world economy and key to global trade, is likely to rebound in 2003 from a hefty decline in 2001, the airlines body Iata said.
Qantas discussing foreign ownership limit with govt
Hainan Air turns in lower profit, plans US listing
Aussie airport in chaos as traffic controllers strike
US airline stocks fall on fare wars
Bangkok Aviation sets share sale price at 60 baht
Swiss airline in alliance talks only with oneworld

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China's ports record significant growth CSX World Terminals appoints senior vice president Tanjung Pelepas develops nation's first electronic VCS Asia to handle more than half of global container trade Kenya Airways expands fleet With Boeing 777s Airborne offers 5.75 per cent Convertible Senior Notes Martinair at a loss, but improving

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MARCH 21, 2002
UPS action dismissed by European Court Deutsche Post integrates DHL mail Larger loss Delta expected UAL union wants out of mediation Descartes claims 40 customers U-Freight opened in Hong Kong DFDS Transport sets up UK project division

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Glimmer of recovery in garment export shipments to US Rudy to lead Fieo team to LAC Plastic exports from southern states set to achieve 15 pc growth KoPT to fix lower tariff rates to lure back lost traffic Business now booming at Alang ship scrap yard Vizag Port smashes through fiscal handling target 10 days earlier VPT Container Terminal to be operational in 9 months Concor's ICD-Jamshedpur now operational Maharashtra transporters' strike ends ASIDE scheme for states/UTs export boost notified Curbs eased for farm goods trade CVD, SAD to stay on some items Tyre exports move up by 21 pc RBI issues new circular on lower export credit rates Rs 50-cr. export order for Bhel Strident rise in coir exports Coir Board on revamp mode 'Global Vendor 2002' open till March 24

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MARCH 21, 2002
Tramp Oil responds to being named in MPA report on investigations into Singapore bunker fuel contamination Mixed demand, good avails reported for NY, Philly and Boston Montreal steady and quiet, Halifax busy and firm Tallinn bothered by competitive Russian market Great Belt, Poland and Klaipeda market report Rotterdam avails good, still tight for Antwerp Crude steady to soft after brief Wednesday rally, retreat possible before further gains later this year Fine avails in Italy and Malta Healthy market in Gibraltar and the Canaries One supplier with tight avails in Istanbul Strike and forthcoming holiday expected to affect deliveries in Piraeus Suez market snapshot Somewhat difficult market in Japan Firm market in Hong Kong, Taiwan IFO softer Singapore avails improved as demand fails to materialise Korean market largely steady this week MPA completes its investigations into the bunker fuel contamination in Singapore Synthetic crude oils gaining momentum in US markets Rotterdam morning market report Bunkering off Algiers port resumed

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MARCH 21, 2002
NSCSA sells containerships CSX Lines for sale? New cranes for ECT Dart Line: second vessel between Dunkirk and Dartford ValuShip foundering? Total maritime tonnage down FRA, STB: safety rules for future rail mergers NS recognized for service excellence ABP co-ordinates transport operations RFG seeks compensation for '15m losses

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MARCH 21, 2002
Noble drilling to buy unfinished Bingos from Ocean Rig Noble Drilling Corporation has contracted with subsidiaries of Ocean Rig ASA for the purchase of the Bingo 9000 Rig 3 and Bingo 9000 Rig 4 for an aggregate purchase price of $45 million. Carnival earnings beat expectations Cruise giant Carnival Corporation reports net income of $129.6 million on revenues of $905.8 million for its first quarter ended February 28, 2002, compared to net income of $128.0 million on revenues of $1.0 billion for the same quarter in 2001.

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MARCH 21, 2002
Port of Olympia will host annual conference of harbormasters and port managers Computer snafu leads to shutdown of navigation locks at The Dalles Dam Port of Port Angeles offering forklift training sessions US Department of Transportation takes action against Japanese air carriers NYK Line joining three e-commerce portals for shipping industry

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Nigeria LNG fires up $710m tanker deal NIGERIA LNG has secured contracts to supply almost 8bn cu m of gas a year to three European energy groups from its just-approved expansion project, NLNG Plus. Demise of the female form makes waves worldwide LLOYD'S List made headlines around the world yesterday - in print, on television and on radio - with our decision to call ships "it" rather than "she". Court raps Spain over yard subsidies THE European Court of Justice has backed the European Commission and ruled that special tax credits given by Spain to its publicly-funded shipyards in 1998 represented unlawful aid. Lim to make Star turn in Chinese seas A BULLISH Star Cruises said yesterday that it aims to develop a widespread Chinese cruise network which could focus on a newly created cruise hub in Hong Kong. Teekay tipped as favourite as Navion goes on sale OFFSHORE shuttle tanker specialist Navion is up for sale only months after owner Norwegian oil giant Statoil bought out shipping company Rasmussen's stake in the Stavanger business, it emerged yesterday.

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MARCH 21, 2002
Japan rejects Oz wheat again On-line fee upsets Ecuador agents Carnival "exceeds expectations" Have your say! Lines forge Europe-ECSA agreement Unscheduled repairs for RCCL ships Brazil discusses steel surcharge Chennai to become Indian hub Indian strike action ends Andrew Weir links up with CMN Arrest ordered for Monica smuggling New box alliance set to kick off Israel 'violating trade agreements' Egypt appoints transport minister Mining giant considers own fleet Sonatrach wins Spanish LNG order Patrick settles with stevedores PTP increases handling capability Malta to hand over people-smuggler Novoship resists Sovcomflot link EU agrees tonnage replacement aid Anti-terrorist law threatens owners Singapore to levy security charge Seoul subsidises North cruises Japan upbeat despite order slump

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MARCH 21, 2002
Ports turnover up 9% for Hutchison The global terminal operator saw overall volume and earnings growth despite a slowdown in export and import activity at key terminals. Schenker parent Stinnes on block Stinnes' majority shareholder says it intends to focus on its core energy businesses. USPS to raise postal rates Bennis will head TSA's maritime security BMC Software contract to TNT Express Rose adds chairman title at BNSF U.S.-Japan battle over Narita slots IATA taps former Alitalia chief BNSF, UP should continue "build-in" talks: STB Freightliner sees $400M savings EU Court rules against UPS in Deutsche Post case Ground unit boosts FedEx earnings

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La Cour européenne rejette le recours d’UPS contre Deutsche Post UPS a perdu une importante manche dans son offensive juridique contre l’incursion de groupes bénéficiant d’un monopole postal sur le marché du colis express et de la logistique. “Le fait que Deutsche Post dispose de fonds afin de réaliser l’acquisition des actions de DHL, n’implique pas l’existence d’un comportement abusif sur le marché réservé”, dit en effet le Tribunal européen de première instance dans un arrêt rendu mercredi à Luxembourg dans l’affaire opposant UPS Europe à la Commission européenne (qui était soutenue par Deutsche Post). Ahlers Logistics poursuit le développement de son réseau mondial Ces dernières années, le groupe belge Ahlers s’est distingué en procédant à une importante diversification de ses activités. Si la fonction d’agence maritime reste importante, elle s’inscrit désormais dans un contexte beaucoup plus vaste, celui des prestations logistiques intégrées à une échelle mondiale, activités devenues dominantes et qui font toujours l’objet de nouveaux développements. L’exercice 2001/2002 témoigne de l’esprit d’entreprise du groupe, dont le chiffre devrait se situer à 125 millions d’EUR, tandis que la valeur ajoutée a progressé de 14%. L’exercice 2002/2003 sera marqué par la mise en route d’un programme d’investissements portant sur 22 mio. d’EUR à réaliser en Flandre et dans la CEI. Christian Leysen, l’administrateur délégué du groupe, et ses proches collaborateurs Luc Maton, directeur général, et Martina Jung, CEO, qui faisaient jeudi dernier le point avec la presse à leur QG anversois, avaient donc toutes les raisons d’être satisfaits. Normes de Kyoto: BASF Anvers sonne l’alarme Lors de la présentation des chiffres annuels, l’administrateur délégué de BASF Anvers, Antoon Dieusaert, n’a pas caché son inquiétude au sujet des conséquences des normes de Kyoto pour le site anversois et l’industrie chimique belge en générale. “Nous avons déjà atteint les normes de Kyoto, mais si le gouvernement applique les normes d’une manière linéaire, notre avenir sera compromis”, a-t-il dit. BASF Anvers n’a pas échappé au ralentissement de la croissance économique mondiale et les résultats en témoignent: le chiffre d’affaires a régressé de 8,9%, le résultat d’exploitation de 31,9% et le bénéfice net de 76,4%. Geodis a pris le contrôle de Geodis Overseas Polytra Dans le cadre de la politique de restructuration que mène sa nouvelle direction, le groupe logistique français Geodis, qui est contrôlé par la SNCF, manifeste apparemment la volonté de contrôler l’ensemble de ses activités. Cette politique vient de se traduire en Belgique, où le groupe est représenté par Geodis Vitesse, par la reprise de la participation de 50% que détenait la société Polytra dans la joint-venture Geodis Overseas Polytra à Anvers. D’après les informations dont nous disposons, le partenaire anversois n’était guère désireux de se dégager d’une entreprise qui donnait d’excellents résultats, mais a finalement cédé aux aspirations de l’autre partie. Polytra a pu réaliser ainsi une plus-value.

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MARCH 21, 2002
SeaAmerica ditches newbuilding plan The Florida-based cruise firm is expected to participate in the upcoming AMCV vessel auctions. Queen Mary 2 set for upgrading The problems with RCCL vessels initiated Carnival to modify Queen Mary 2's propulsion units. Carnival puts Patriot up for sale The sale offer of the vintage passenger ship fails to draw any bids so far. UK may review Carnival-POC merger plan The European Commission may refer the merger proposal back to the UK. Carnival gets back on course Cruise giant's earnings hold steady as bookings start to roll in again. Fain talks up P&O Princess merger Royal Caribbean's Richard Fain is busy trying to convince regulators his deal is a better bet than Carnival bid. Georgian owner eyes tanker newbuildings Ocean Shipping Co wants to boost its tanker fleet with two options controlled by Schoeller. Evergreen and CMA forge slot share first Taiwanese and French liner kings team up in deal set to fill space on sailings. Tordenskjold buys cement ships Purchase and charter back deal worth $100m over a decade. Maurice Dixson quits Simon Group UK shipowner and ports group has a new boss ahead of its expected sale. Statoil to sell Navion Tanker company privatisation will reduce oil parent's stake to below 50%. Szczecin stoppage set to continue Finance deal for cash strapped Polish yard could be signed tomorrow but no date set for workers' return. US Coast Guard detains 11 ships Genmar tanker, a Docenave panamax, and Greek controlled capesize hooked in US port state control net. More police raids at Sasebo Japanese yard's Tokyo office searched as police look for evidence of subsidy fraud. Lasco turns around losses Last year was profitable for Latvian Shipping, but views differ on new tankers' performance. Samsung soars to two year high Korea's third largest shipbuilder has seen its share price rocket 64% so far this year. Commodore to dispose of shipping interests Channel Islands-based firm says its shipping and freight forwarding operations are up for sale. QNNTC arranges finance deal with GIB Qatar owner inks loan with Gulf International Bank to help finance newbuildings.