US/Asia liner agreements combine CONTAINER lines in the US trans-Pacific trade are no longer involved in separate rate and services discussion groups
'Tear off heads', yard scheme's boss told THE KREMLIN'S defence industry boss has accused government-owned United Shipbuilding Corp of falling short of its targets in building a new Far East shipyard
APL to scrap US presidents FOUR OLDER box ships in the Suez Express Service have outlived their usefulness and will be scrapped, APL confirmed today
Nokta debuts shipping picks GLOBAL Hunter Securities's newly appointed analyst Omar Nokta outlined his sector forecasts today and tipped his six most promising shipping stocks
NCSP's profits climb NCSP, the London-listed Russian ports group, said today profits for FY12 were $316M, a big jump from last year's earnings of $130
RINA net profits fell in 2012 RINA, the Italian classification society, reported a fall in FY12 net profit from 2011 results, despite a sharp increase in revenues
Euronav sees 'Russian roulette' on tankers ANTWERP tanker operator Euronav today warned charterers and brokers that they are playing "Russian roulette" with tanker rates
Teekay Offshore raises $60M NYSE-listed Teekay Offshore has secured a new private investment that will partly fund shuttle tanker newbuildings for the UK's BG Group
Atlas shrugs off cyclone ATLAS Iron in Australia's Pilbera took a direct hit when Cyclone Rusty hit the coast in February but still shipped a record 1.86M tones of iron ore in 1Q13
Hamburg Süd tightens grip on costs GERMAN liner Hamburg Süd is bracing itself for a prolonged slump in box rates and sees tight management of costs as the only way to improve margins
GCL unit is back to black TMSC, a subsidiary of GCL, returned to the black in 2012 with 322M yuan ($51.7M) in profits, mainly because of a reversal of 377M yuan worth of the impairment provisions
Asian liners try again on rates MAJOR Asian liners said today they are attempting to gain rates rises for Asia/Europe routes for the third time this year
Chinese panel approves CSSC equity shuffle THE CHINA Securities Regulatory Commission today approved a move by CSSC Jiangnan HI to transfer 34% of its equity to its parent
Drybulker S&P values rise VALUES of drybulkers have started to rise on the secondhand market despite continued weak spot freight rates, shipping analysts noted
US Industrial Production Index Hits Five-Year High U.S. Industrial Production Index Full-size image The U.S. Industrial Production Index continued to climb in March 2013, reaching 99.5, according to the latest retail report from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The last time the index had reached this level was in March 2008. March's total industrial production, which...
Georgia Ports to Settle Lawsuit Against River Deepening The last environmental hurdle to the long-delayed Savannah River Harbor Expansion Project was cleared Wednesday when the South Carolina Savannah River Maritime Commission approved a settlement of the lawsuit it and three environmental groups had filed to block it. Under the tentative settlement, the Georgia Ports Authority and other state entities...
Cargo Volume Rises 1.2 Percent at NCSP Group NCSP Group reported cargo volume in 2012 increased 1.2 percent, or 1.9 million metric tons, reaching 159 million metric tons. In certain cargoes such as oil products, ferrous metals and grain, the group's volumes increased at a faster pace than the market, the Russian terminal operator said, in a written statement....
Heartland Express's Profit Jumps 19 Percent Heartland Express reported profit of $19.7 million for the first quarter of 2013, an increase of 19 percent from the $16.6 million reported for the same period in 2012. Quarterly revenue was $134.3 million, down slightly from $134.8 million in the first quarter of the previous year. With Easter and Good...
Orwellian Logic and Port Policy It appears the ports of California are on the verge of adopting a policy that will automatically increase costs for their tenants and customers on an annual basis. Proposed by the California Association of Port Authorities, a new annual general rate increase would automatically increase various rates on port tenants...
USMX Ratifies ILA Master Contract Employers ratified a six-year master contract for International Longshoremen's Association members at East and Gulf Coast ports, giving final approval to a deal that ILA members approved last week. Members of United States Maritime Alliance, the coastwide umbrella organization for 43 carriers, terminal operators and port associations, ratified the contract in...
CEVA, Italian Apparel Company Sign E-Commerce Deal CEVA Logistics has signed a five-year e-commerce contract with Liu-Jo. Under the terms of the agreement, CEVA will provide the Italian fashion apparel, accessories and footwear company with supply chain solutions for online sales, such as packaging, gift packaging and the management of Liu-Jo returned apparel, bags, shoes and accessories at...
YRC Worldwide, IAM 'Dodge Bullet' with Agreement YRC Worldwide and its mechanics may have dodged a bullet by reaching a tentative contract agreement and avoiding a potentially costly and disruptive lockout. That's a relief to shippers, who no longer have to worry about even minor supply chain disruptions caused by a lockout or pickets at 10 to 15...
YRC, Mechanics Reach Tentative Contract Agreement YRC Worldwide reached a tentative contract agreement with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, avoiding a potentially disruptive lockout of about 200 mechanics at several YRC Freight and Holland terminals. The company said the tentative contract includes "shared-sacrifice provisions that will bring IAM members in alignment with fellow YRC...
Diana Containerships Sells Vessel for Scrapping Diana Containerships, through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, has signed a memorandum of agreement to sell its 1989-built vessel Maersk Madrid to an unaffiliated third party for demolition, with delivery due to the buyers by mid-May, for a sale price of about $8.8 million before commissions. Upon completion of the sale of...
MSC's Far East-Australia Rates Set for Mid-May Hike Mediterranean Shipping Co. will hike rates for all cargo on its Panda and Wallaby services on its trade from the Far East to any Australian port, starting May 15. The increase will be $300 per 20-foot-equivalent unit....
US Customs Seeks Brokers for Importer Self-Assessment Pilot Program U.S. Customs and Border Protection will test allowing customs brokers to pre-certify importers for participation in the Importer Self-Assessment program. The primary goal of the Broker Importer Self-Assessment Pre-Certification test is to leverage customs broker relationships to facilitate and promote importer participation in the ISA program, especially for small and medium...
Phase 1 of Rotterdam's Maasvlakte 2 Project Completed Koninklijke Boskalis Westminster and Van Oord Dredging and Marine Contractors have completed the first stage of the Port of Rotterdam Authority's Maasvlakte 2 expansion in the Netherlands. PUMA, the contractors' joint venture, started the expansion at the Port of Rotterdam five years ago. The project includes 700 hectares (about 1,730 acres)...
Drewry's Trans-Pacific Benchmark Down 7.2 Percent Y-O-Y Drewry Container Rate Benchmark, April 17, 2013 Full-size image Drewry's Hong Kong-to-Los Angeles Container Rate Benchmark fell to $2,232 per 40-foot container this week, down 7.2 percent from the same week in 2012. This is the first year-over-year loss since the JOC began collecting this data in October 2011. The benchmark rate for...
Charleston's Container Volume Hits Five-Year High The Port of Charleston's container volume rose 10 percent in the first nine months of the fiscal year that began July 1, 2012, according to the South Carolina Ports Authority. SCPA's two container terminals in Charleston handled 1.16 million 20-foot-equivalent units through March 2013, the highest container volume in the last...
Congestion at India's Chennai Fosters Port Projects Ongoing congestion at India's gateway Port of Chennai is driving demand for alternative port options on India's east coast. Vessel delays have prompted lines to implement a series of congestion surcharges at Chennai in recent years, and congestion at the port's two private container terminals is resulting in delays of at...
Cosco to Hike Asia-Europe Rates in Mid-May Cosco will boost rates for all shipments in its trade from the Far East, excluding Japan, and the India and Pakistan region to Northwest Europe and the Mediterranean, including Israel, Lebanon, Syria and the North Africa and West Africa regions, effective May 15. The increase will be $600 per 20-foot-equivalent unit....
Top 40 Container Lines: Who's Up and Who's Down on US Exports? Beyond the biggest carriers - the Maersk Lines, MSCs, CMA CGMs, APLs and Evergreens - that dominate the U.S. containerized ocean trades are some of the biggest movers. The Journal of Commerce Top 40 Container Carriers, after all, isn't just about the Top 10. It goes much deeper, to the...
EXM drops anchor in the US Excel Maritime Carriers of Greece has opened an office in White Plains, New York but the motive behind the move isn't clear.
Trafigura takes Diamond 8 Connecticut-based Diamond S Shipping apparently has solved the problem of eight products tankers displaced from bankrupt Overseas Shipholding Group, fixing the octet on mixed employment with giant commodities trader Trafigura, market sources said today.
Don't stop now! A leading Wall Street equity analyst is urging Diana Containerships (DCIX) of Greece to dispose of two vintage boxships after parting ways with a panamax chartered to Maersk.
GE seals power pacts GE has firmed up a series of contracts to equip three LNG carriers under construction in South Korea with electric power and propulsion systems.
Carnival readies splash Carnival Corp is preparing to splash up to $700m on fleet-wide upgrades after attracting a flood of bad headlines.
Phoenix flops again Chinese bulker owner CSC Phoenix has fallen to another loss in 2012, even though the deficit was reduced from 2011.
'One of the worst ever' VLCC owners are staring down the barrel of one of the worst years on record, Global Hunter Securities says.
First falls further Taiwanese bulker owner First Steamship has posted a lower annual profit as costs rose.
Diana ditches oldie Diana Containerships has scrapped a panamax vessel picked up from AP Moller-Maersk just two years ago.
Zamakona reels in $35m Spains's Astilleros Zamakona has won a contract to build a fishing vessel for a Panamanian owner.
Back with a six pack Omar Nokta didn't find much time for rest and relaxation while on gardening leave following his departure from Dahlman Rose, it appears.
Tuofu lines up double The Export-Import Bank of China (China Exim Bank) is ready to fund another two new bulkers for Tuofu Ocean Shipping.
NCSP dazzled by FX Novorossiysk Commercial Sea Port (NCSP) has reported a huge upswing in full-year earnings thanks to a foreign exchange gain.
Glencore gets it done Gencore is finally free to complete a long-awaited merger with Xstrata after China gave the move the green light.
Lenac under scrutiny Croatia's competition regulator AZTN has started a probe into a port agency deal involving shiprepair yard Viktor Lenac.
Mind the gap! A Neste Shipping products carrier was rear-ended by a general cargoship after getting stuck in ice in the Bay of Bothnia.
Baltic pays its respects Flags are flying at half mast outside the Baltic Exchange in London as a mark of respect to former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, whose funeral is taking place in the city today.
Yujin quitting London Asian tanker owner Yujin International wants to scrap its London listing to source private funding and save money.
China set for landmark Chinese shipyards are challenging the established order by bagging more jack-up contracts than their Singaporean rivals this year, according to OCBC.
TAS sells quartet TAS Offshore has secured new contracts for four offshore support vessels worth MYR 160m ($52.9m).
Palumbo under arrest Italian shipyard owner Antonio Palumbo has been placed under house arrest in a probe into the alleged illegal transport of hazardous waste.
Valemax calls in China China's ban on port calls by Vale's 400,000-dwt VLOCs looks to have been lifted after one of the ships docked at Lianyungang.
A rally for rival Euronav's first quarter report may have left a flea in the ear of oil companies and brokers but it did contain some positives for its major rival.
CGG and LDA team up CGG and Louis Dreyfus Armateurs Group (LDA) have teamed up to form a ship management joint venture.
Cyprus' shipping hope Shipping can help Cyprus recover from its financial crisis, but only if more vessels join the Cypriot register, a leading owner has said.
Aker breaks the ice Finland's transport agency has brought in Aker Arctic Technology to design its new icebreaker.
KDB joins finance party Korean bank partners Japanese and French lenders to fund Samsung LNG ships.
KfW eyes loan boost German bank KfW could increase lending to shipowners to fill the gaps left by rivals cutting their exposure.
TOO to raise cash Teekay Offshore Partners plans to sell new shares to raise funds to pay for its four shuttle tanker newbuildings.
Wah Kwong in at Chengxi Wah Kwong Maritime Transport has joined the bulker order rush with a series of ultramax newbuildings in China.
Seadrill ties-up Neptune Seadrill has secured employment for one of its drillship newbuildings with LLOG Bluewater Holdings.
ABS backs small gas ship GTT, the membrane containment-system designer, has received class backing for a new smaller gas carrier design.
RGL cutting oldies RGL Shipping, a subsidiary of Beijing's Rui Gang Lian Group, continues to clearout its elderly VLOC tonnage.
NEWSFLASH: USMX ratifies new ILA master contract Members of the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX), which recently negotiated a new six-year master contract with the International Longshoremen's Association on behalf of the U.S. East and Gulf Coast dockworker employers, ratified the new contract this afternoon.
Southern Air emerges from Chapter 11
Long Beach volume surges in March, L.A.'s falls March container volume at the Port of Los Angeles plummeted 22.6 percent year-on-year, including a 28.8 percent drop in inbound cargo, while Long Beach's volume rose 5.4 percent, despite a 0.5 percent drop in loaded imports.
K+N opens office in Alabama
Great Lakes dry bulk down in March
Schenker acquires Panamanian forwarder
Concern over rush to renew TWIC cards Lawmakers worry whether the Transportation Security Administration will be able to efficiently handle the renewal of large numbers of Transportation Worker Identification Credentials (TWIC) expiring this year.
Cathay sees another tonnage decline in March
Parallel Infrastructure to widen focus in 2013
Supreme Court hears arguments in L.A. drayage truck case
Congressmen say food aid reforms threaten U.S. fleet Lawmakers yesterday blasted plans by the Obama administration to modify food aid programs to allow more local and regional purchasing of food, citing negative effects on both farmers and the U.S. merchant marine.
Commerce, State issue new export rules The U.S. Commerce and State departments have proposed a number of amendments to two export control guidelines to redefine the export of aircraft, associated munitions items, and gas turbine engines.
Executive moves
Report: For safety, FAA should plug information gaps
Crude prices fall as output surges Prices dropped after DOE confirmed output climbed and gasoline and diesel demand decreased.
World Fuel Services to host earnings call with management team Call, scheduled for 17:00 (Eastern Time) on April 30, will focus on company's first quarter 2013 results.
Tanker rates 'no longer sustainable' Euronav posts loss of $10.7 million in the first three months of 2013.
Avails tight in Fujairah Bunker prices falling in South Africa.
Prices lack direction in European ports Hamburg market quiet.
Russian player reports fall in bunker sales 'Revenue from bunkering declined by $66.8 million,' says Novorossiysk Commercial Sea Port Group.
New player to deploy three tankers in West Africa Endofa will do its 'utmost to become a key player in the region.'
Bunker prices in Asia end mixed Supplies for some players in Singapore remained tight.
High CCAI found in low sulphur fuels DNVPS issues fuel quality alert for San Francisco and surrounding ports.
Indian fuel oil cargoes could be heading for Fujairah Traders say low viscosity cargoes could be used as blending material.
Japanese liners to profit from weaker yen Pre-tax profit for Japan's three major liners may add up to 51.6 billion yen.
Falling prices affect bunkering operations in Asia Traders in Singapore and Hong Kong note increased orders for bunkers in spot market.
US Navy adds modern newbuilds to fleet Additions include a fuel efficient research vessel.
Japan bunker sales fall in February Month-on-month sales fell 12.7% to 303,696 kl.
Iran may 'need enriched uranium' to power ships Iranian official reopens case for nuclear powered ships.
Singapore-based firm expands bunker trading team Both Boey and Cai will focus on the Singapore market, says Trading Manager of G-Fuel.
The Suez Canal Authority has announced that it will introduce surcharges on transit tariffs through the Egyptian canal for most major cargo vessels, effective July 15.
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