Third car carrier executive sentenced Former NYK executive Susumu Tanaka has been sentenced to 15 months in a US prison and ordered to pay a USD20,000 fine after pleading guilty for conspiring to fix prices on ro-ro cargo. Tanaka, who had been a manager in NYK's car carrier division at the time of the incident, is the third Japanese
Houston Ship Channel reopens Houston Ship Channel has reopened after a days-long shutdown following a vessel collision. Harbour pilots have now begun reducing the queue of 90 vessels that are waiting to transit the channel. A 7.2km section of the channel near the Barbour's Cut Container terminal had been shut down on 9 March
Cochin signs new dredger deal with Royal IHC India's state-owned Cochin Shipyard has signed an agreement with Netherlands-based Royal IHC to collaborate on dredgers for the Indian market. IHC is the world's top designer and manufacturer of dredgers and associated equipment. "As part of the 'Make In India' programme, Cochin Shipyard is
PSA sees rise in 2014 container throughput Singapore-listed port operator, PSA International (PSA) posted 65.44 million teu in 2014, representing an increase of 5.8% from the previous year. The company's flagship Singapore Terminals contributed about 33.55 million teu with a growth of 4.1% year-on-year, and PSA terminals outside Singapore
Limited recovery predicted for Doosan Engine Although shares in South Korea's Doosan Engine have rallied this year on expectations of more orders and turnaround in operating profit, further upside will be limited, according to an analyst's research note. After visiting the company, Samsung Securities analyst Han Young-soo said, "Doosan Engine
Chevron workers stranded ahead of Cyclone Olwyn More than 1,000 Chevron workers were stranded on Barrow Island as Cylone Olwyn bears down on the Pilbara. The Pilbara Port Authority announced the port officially closed at 10am local time. Unions said workers were stranded there after the company failed to evacuate them before the airfield
Cruise fire sparks safety alert Shipowners and operators of all vessel types have been urged by the US Coast Guard (USCG) to update safety guidelines following a cruise ship fire that killed three people in December. In a Marine Safety Alert issued 11 March by the USCG's Inspections and Compliance Directorate, the agency
Franbo Lines' revenue up a third in February Taipei-listed bulk carrier Franbo Lines on 11 March posted a revenue of TWD57 million (USD1.8 million) for this February, up 32.57% year on year (y/y). Its revenue for the first two months of 2015 totalled at TWD120 million, a 14.11% increase y/y. Franbo Lines stated that the drop of Baltic Dry
Cargo ship capsizes off Jeju Island, South Korea A Hong Kong-registered ship has capsized off South Korea's Jeju Island, but no casualties were reported in the incident. According to South Korean newspaper Halla Ilbo, the 4,400-tonne cargo ship Eastern Amber has capsized 40 km northwest of Chujado Island, Jeju, at 21:21 h local time on 10 March.
Concern grows over ship recycling methods There is growing concern that the EU Ship Recycling Regulation (EU SRR) could undermine the Hong Kong Convention with regards to ship recycling methods. The Hong Kong Convention aims to ensure that ship recycling does not threaten human health, safety, and the environment, whereas the EU SRR
Insignia cruise deaths prompt safety alert Shipowners and operators of all vessel types have been urged by the US Coast Guard (USCG) to update safety guidelines following a cruise ship fire that killed three people in December 2014. In a Marine Safety Alert issued 11 March by the USCG's Inspections and Compliance Directorate, the agency
ECSA joins fight to save EU infrastructure funding European shipowners' organisation ECSA has joined other leading transport bodies in calling on EU transport ministers to prevent planned EU transport infrastructure spending being eroded by the EUR315 billion (USD333 billion) strategic investment fund championed by EU commission president Jean-Claude Juncker. The new grouping, which comprises 14 bodies
HPH Trust receives Baa1 rating by Moody's Singapore-listed port operator Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) Trust's proposed bonds have been assigned a Baa1 rating by credit rating company Moody's Investors Service. According to Moody's, HPH Trust's Baa1 rating is underpinned by favourable industry dynamics and light-handed regulation, which
Petra Energy clinches deepwater project Malaysia-listed integrated brown field services provider Petra Energy has been awarded the topside maintenance execution services for the Gumusut Kakap floating production system by Sabah Shell Petroleum Company. The contract was signed by Petra Resources, a wholly owned subsidiary of Petra Energy
Four Japanese companies form an LPG importer Three Japanese oil refining companies and a trading firm have merged their LPG businesses to form a new LPG import enterprise. Gyxis Corporation has been formed from the integration of the LPG units of Cosmo Oil, Showa Shell Sekiyu, TonenGeneral Sekiyu, and Sumitomo Corporation, and will begin
Astomos fixes three VLGCs for spot shipments Japanese LPG importer Astomos Energy is said to have fixed three very large gas carriers (VLGCs) for spot shipments this week, a move that got brokers talking. A London-based broker told IHS Maritime that Astomos Energy reportedly booked Hellas Serenity, Morston, and another ship, for which brokers
China's cabotage shipping capacity falls y/y Shipping capacity fell across major merchant vessel types in China's cabotage trade in 2014 on a year-on-year (y/y) basis, according to the Water Transport Bureau of China's Ministry of Transport. For bulk carriers over 10,000 dwt in the cabotage trade, the overall capacity dropped 3.3% y/y to 53.4
Yokohama port's box traffic sinks in December The Port of Yokohama in Japan saw its cargo traffic decline for the third straight month in December on a year-on-year (y/y) basis, according to preliminary figures released by the Yokohama municipal government on 11 March. The port's cargo traffic in December slumped 1.5% y/y to 10.152 million
Grexit fears prove no impediment to finance for Greek owners If anything, interest from banks and funds is picking up, say experts
Yard Talk | Measuring up the musings about mega shipbuilding mergers CSSC-CSIC and STX-Sungdong-SPP deals appear to be more hot air than reality, but a Yangzijiang-Rongsheng union has a chance
Show Me the Money - Bleak prospects for Fesco Geo-political forces are squeezing the Russian shipping line
Anek shrugs off ro-pax arrest Olympic Champion still idle as Hellenic Seaways pursues $6m in charter hire claims
Rotterdam and Antwerp face barge congestion Contargo warns that it is experiencing waiting times of up to 92 hours
Moody's grants Baa1 to Hutchison Port Holdings Trust proposed bonds Proceeds will mainly be used for for refinancing existing debts
Keeping an eye on opportunities... and risks For a balanced view, it is crucial to look at both sides of the tanker argument
Four new handysize bulkers for Louis Dreyfus Armateurs Vessels mark first shipping foray for FFP
Aker-Crowley joint venture lands $325m loan as Jones Act tanker business still entices Jones Act trade is 'best place to be in the world' right now, but will it stay that way?
Houston box operations face another day of disruption Update: Barbours Cut terminal expected to open at 1300 hrs local time
BW LPG management shake-up comes as rivals bite at its heels Evergas boss Martin Ackermann recruited to replace Nicholas Gleeson, who returns to role as BW Group finance chief
Aronnax: Too much choice? Has shipping been left running scared by the growing list of environmental technologies
Commerzbank shipping book down to $12.7bn as pullout continues Otto confirms withdrawal despite tentative improvement for boxships
Cyclone threatens iron ore trade in Western Australia A storm with 165 km per hour gusts is heading south towards Dampier
Trucking employment approaches peak, pressuring driver wages, rates As the U.S. heads toward what some economists consider "full employment," trucking companies tracked by the Labor Department hired an additional 2,600 workers in February, pushing the monthly JOC.com Trucking Employment Index reading up to 99.9. That means the more than 100,000 motor carriers surveyed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor...
Horizon sells Puerto Rico assets, turns over San Juan terminal lease Horizon Lines has sold some of its San Juan, Puerto Rico, container assets to a stevedoring and terminal operator based on the island, the latest sign of the U.S. domestic carrier's exit from the business. The Charlotte, North Carolina-based company also said it has assigned its lease of the terminal to...
US containerized ocean trade with Asian countries
US West Coast containerized ocean trade via Asian ports
West Coast intermodal volume surge tests inland hubs Tightening Chicago drayage capacity is causing rates to spike, as shippers have little choice but to pay for more local trucking to avoid demurrage charges that railroads impose if loads aren't removed from terminals after two days. Drayage rates for the largest North American freight hub have spiked at least 10...
2014 in review: Not your normal year in trans-Pacific trade It's a known unknown: We will never know what 2014 could have been, volume-wise, for U.S. West Coast ports, the gateway to the trans-Pacific container trade. It wasn't a normal year for West Coast port labor and productivity. Savvy cargo interests strived to reduce risk by accelerating cargo activity ahead of...
Negotiations to avert port strike continue in India India's shipping minister, Nitin Gadkari, met with union leaders Thursday in an attempt to avert a threatened indefinite strike by dockworkers that could cripple major port operations. Gadkari assured union representatives that a planned government reform of major ports would not lead to privatization of the public enterprises and a loss...
Florida governor makes play for West Coast business "Florida is on a mission," Gov. Rick Scott announced Thursday. In a letter to shipping industry leaders, the Republican governor said he's amping up efforts to bring new business to Florida's ports, and he's set on taking that business from the U.S. West Coast. Scott said he plans to lead a trade...
Drayage demand spikes at NY-NJ port terminals This story was updated at 3:10 p.m., Thursday, March 12 The hottest market for drayage this week may not be Los Angeles or Long Beach but New York and New Jersey, where shippers and brokers are scrambling to find power to move containers and trucks are backing up in long lines...
PSA reports record volume but profit dip PSA International's container traffic hit a record high in 2014, but the Singapore-based global terminal operator's profit dipped slightly on higher operating costs. Traffic grew 5.8 percent to 65.44 million 20-foot-equivalent units, consolidating PSA's position as the world's largest terminal operator, ahead of Hong Kong's Hutchison Port Holdings. Net profit slipped, however,...
Finding Neverland This year's TPM Conference will probably always be remembered as the event that took place within weeks of the conclusion of the most bruising West Coast labor negotiations in recent memory - surpassing, in its ill-effects on company supply chains, even the 10-day lockout in the fall of 2002. Despite the...
Houston's Barbours Cut to reopen today after collision cleanup The Port of Houston's Barbours Cut Terminal is set to reopen early this afternoon, two days after a tanker and bulk carrier collided in the Houston Ship Channel, leaking a flammable chemical into the surrounding waters. "I'm looking now and it appears traffic is moving in the channel again," Bill Hensel,...
India posts 10-month $17.8 billion trade surplus with US India's two-way trade with the U.S. totaled about $54 billion in the first 10 months of fiscal year 2014-15, which ends March 2015. India's U.S.-bound shipments totaled $36 billion and its imports from the U.S., $18.2 billion. As a result, India posted a trade surplus of $17.8 billion with the...
Lufthansa Cargo in the black for 5th straight year, with profit up 27 percent Lufthansa Cargo's operating profit surged nearly 27 percent in 2014. The German carrier remained in the black for the fifth consecutive year despite a weak global air freight market that has pushed many of its rivals into the red. The increase, to 100 million euros ($106 million) from 79 million euros...
NY-NJ container volume jump highlights West Coast diversions Container traffic at the Port of New York and New Jersey jumped 7.8 percent year-over-year in January, an all-time record for the month and a reflection of how some East Coast ports are benefiting from diversions away from congested ports on the opposite coast. The traffic of 268,442 twenty-foot equilvalent units...
Mega shippers define China trade patterns, Seabury says SHANGHAI - The behavior of a handful of mega shippers in China completely defines the market, and any analysis of imports and exports must take this into account, advised Seabury Group managing director Gert-Jan Jansen.China has 375,000 individual shippers importing and exporting by air into every zip code in the...
Progress at US terminal gates expected this year, FMC chairman says LONG BEACH, California -Mario Cordero, chairman of the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission, told the Harbor Trucking Association in Long Beach last week there is reason to believe that terminal operators will do their best to improve turn times at U.S. ports this year. Cordero earlier on March 3 served as moderator...
Capital cans fundraiser Capital Product Partners has abandoned plans to tap the bond market for cash to refinance existing debt.
Houston Channel reopens The Houston Ship Channel reopened Thursday morning in the wake of a collision that stalled inbound and outbound traffic for days.
Mercuria wants more Not content with picking off around 40 former OW Bunker staffers at the turn of the year, Mercuria has its sights on another recruitment drive.
Bharati's wind-up turmoil Lenders to India's Bharati Shipyard looking to recover their dues may find it difficult to do so as many creditors have filed winding-up petitions against the shipbuilder.
Viking Line edges up Finnish ferry group Viking Line has posted a better annual profit as it sold assets and benefited from lower fuel bills.
Ardmore times growth spurt Wells Fargo has predicted a steady rise in profit for Ardmore Shipping in initiating coverage of the tanker owner.
Drugs seized from ship Colombian authorities have found packets of cocaine and marijuana on a Panama-flagged cargoship.
Profit for Principal Principal Maritime ended 2014 in the black as the New York IPO hopeful quietly kept its listing ambitions alive.
Chugoku Sougyo tries again Japanese owner Chugoku Sougyo is making a second attempt in as many months to sell one of its supramax bulkers, it is claimed.
Boskalis suspends buyback Royal Boskalis Westminster has suspended the repurchase of up to 10 million shares despite posting a record profit for 2014.
Norden sells tanker twins Danish owner Norden has continued its return to asset play with the sale of two tankers to Compania Chilena de Navegacion Interoceanica (CCNI).
Five more years Indian owner Great Eastern Shipping's board has reappointed managing director and deputy chairman Bharat Sheth for five more years.
PSA steady in 2014 PSA International has held its ground in terms of revenue and profit during a year which the company described as "business unusual".
Horizon sells up US container line Horizon Lines has offloaded some of its container terminal assets in Puerto Rico.
Shell takes LR2 Oil major Shell has reportedly taken an LR2 products tanker on time charter from Dorian Hellas.
Virgin ground? A former senior executive of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCL) has accused billionaire Richard Branson of copying plans and ideas for his new cruiseship business.
Western Bulk buys bonds Oslo-listed Western Bulk has spent NOK 29m ($3.57m) on buying back nearly 10% of its bonds due in 2017.
BW LPG poaches Ackermann Evergas CEO Martin Ackermann is taking the top job at BW LPG as incumbent Nick Gleeson returns to his previous role of CFO of BW Group.
Dof in Australian deal Dof Subsea has boosted its ties with Chevron as it won a contract for offshore support work in Australia.
AKPS secures $325m loan Aker Philadelphia Shipyard (AKPS) has clinched $325m of financing for its tanker joint venture with US owner Crowley.
Teething troubles A new CalMac ferry was withdrawn from service in Scotland for the second time after a lubricant pipe split.
CSE bulker grounds A Chinese bulker has grounded in a severe snowstorm off the coast of Japan.
Auditor 'doubts' remain Auditors have again expressed doubt about DryShips' future but the company's annual report shows a reduction in loans with covenant breaches.
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