By Alexander Whiteman (The Loadstar) - West coast US ports suffered last month, but there may be some relief with the news that the US government is rethinking plans for further tariffs in September. The port of Long Beach experienced a 9.7% volume drop in July, handling 621,780 teu, and executive director Mario Cordero pointed the finger of blame in just one … [Read more...]
End of Shipping Alliances Would Send Freight Rates Soaring
By Gavin van Marle in Rotterdam (The Loadstar) - Shipper opposition to deepsea liner shipping alliances may be dangerously misplaced, delegates at the TOC Container Supply Chain event in Rotterdam heard yesterday. Lars Jensen, chief executive and partner of SeaIntelligence Consulting, said efforts by some to bar container lines from operating in alliances, claiming they have … [Read more...]
After Lackluster First Quarter, Second Quarter Could Be Even Worse for Container Lines
By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) - With the second quarter now two-thirds done ocean carriers look to be heading for a second successive H1 loss, making a good peak season more essential than ever for the sustainability of the liner industry. Last week CMA CGM completed the set of container lines that publish their financial results recording a less than inspiring $22m net … [Read more...]
More Carriers Turn to Scrubbers Ahead of IMO 2020
By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) - Around 16% of the ocean carrier global fleet – equating to 36% in terms of teu capacity – will be equipped with exhaust gas cleaning scrubber systems to comply with the IMO 2020 0.5% sulphur cap, according to Alphaliner. Ships with approved scrubber systems installed will be allowed to continue to burn heavy fuel oil (HFO) after 1 January … [Read more...]
Carriers Blank More Sailings as Transpacific Box Rates Continue to Slide
By Gavin van Marle (The Loadstar) - A blanked sailing from the 2M+HMM grouping on the transpacific this week failed to halt the further erosion of freight rates to both the Asia-US west coast and Asia-US east coast destinations. The departure of the 8,500 teu Hyundai Faith, scheduled for this week, was cancelled “to rationalise capacity supply from Asia to the US west … [Read more...]