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Alphaliner News

08 Dec 2023

OpEd: Shipping Seeks Safe Waters in Era of Deadly Geopolitics

Ā© xmagics / Adobe Stock

As tankers, car-carriers and other merchant vessels pass through the Malacca Strait, unlit fishing boats criss-cross the shipping lanes at night, making it one of the most challenging sea areas of the world to transit, even during peacetime.Should a major war ever come to Asia, those challenges could be magnified spectacularly, with hundreds of vessels abruptly leaving the international waters in the middle of the Strait for what they hope might be the relative safety of the national territorial waters of nearby neutral nations.The Strait ā€“ between Thailandā€¦

21 Jun 2022

Old is Gold: Sky-high Cost of Ageing Containerships Sounds Inflation SOS

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Shipping companies are transforming rust buckets into gold mines in a modern-day alchemy that could fuel already rampant inflation for years to come.The disruption to world trade caused by pandemic lockdowns and a shortage of new cargo vessels has pushed freight rates for ageing containerships to record highs.Cashing in on the boom, shipping firms are locking in long-term leases lasting three to four years, which means consumers could carry on paying the price for the surge in costs until hundreds of new ships on order come into service.Take the Synergy Oaklandā€¦

26 Apr 2022

Maersk Raises Full-year Guidance, But Says Shipping Boom Will Stabilize in H2

A Maersk container shipo - Credit - lazyllama/AdobeStock

Shipping group Maersk, often seen as a barometer for global trade, on Tuesday cautioned the container market may normalize in the second half of the year, even as it raised full-year guidance driven by high container freight rates.The shipping industry has seen record profits in recent quarters as a surge in consumer demand, pandemic-related bottlenecks in U.S. and Chinese ports and more recently an airspace closure following Russia's invasion of Ukraine prompted a spike in freight rates.But the forecast from Maerskā€¦

06 Jan 2022

Size Not the Main Goal, Shippers Say, as MSC Overtakes Maersk

Credit: VanderWolf Images/AdobeStock

Swiss-based container group MSC has overtaken Denmark's Maersk as the world's biggest shipper, the company said, confirming data from intelligence provider Alphaliner.After taking delivery of several ships last year, MSC or Mediterranean Shipping Company has capacity to move the equivalent of 4,284 million twenty-foot containers, Alphaliner said. That compares with Maersk's 4,282 million.Both companies, which according to Alphaliner hold markets share of around 17%, said size was not the objective.Asked for commentā€¦

09 Sep 2021

Container Shipping: Record Delays, Record Profits

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As ports and hinterland transport struggle to keep up, delays at ports are soaking up capacity leading to frustration on the shippersā€™ side and leaving carriers struggling to keep up all the while making record profits, shipping organization BIMCO reports.Drivers of demand and freight ratesThe container shipping market has frequently appeared in the headlines over the summer as freight rates and port congestion levels continue to reach record highs. Port closures caused by COVIDā€¦

18 Mar 2021

Hapag-Lloyd Avoids Forecast Due to Coronavirus Uncertainty

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German container shipper Hapag-Lloyd said on Thursday it almost tripled its net result in 2020 due to lower costs and higher freight rates, but shied away from specifying 2021 results due to uncertainty in the coronavirus crisis.The net result in 2020 amounted to 935 million euros ($1.12 billion) compared with 373 million euros in 2019 after revenue rose 3% and freight rates increased 4%, it said in a statement.Hapag-Lloyd, the worldā€™s fifth largest container line, expected toā€¦

28 Jan 2021

Far East Container Spot Rates to Brazil Rise 230.5% -BIMCO

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What started as a red-hot container market for Far East to U.S. trades has now spread to other routes, with rates from the Far East to Brazil seeing particularly high spot rates, BIMCO says. On January 24, 2021, the base freight rate for a forty-foot container from the Far East to the Port of Santos reached $9,299. Average rates for January are now 230.5% higher than they were in January 2020.Santos is the largest container port in South America, handling 4.2 million TEU in 2019 alone.The red-hot spot market is a result of the imbalance of trade over the past yearā€¦

16 Jun 2020

Suez Canal Ship Transits Rise Amid COVID-19

Ā© Igor Yu. Groshev / Adobe Stock

Transits through the Suez Canal, the beating heart of the Egyptian economy, have stayed remarkably resilient to the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic if judging by total transits of the three commercial shipping sectors which are up 8% year-on-year. This is despite bleak economic growth prospects world-wide following the pandemic, and highlights that shipping remains the backbone of the global economy.It is often said that a picture says more than 1,000 words, but 6,166 ship transits in the Suez Canal can certainly also tell an interesting tale.

19 Mar 2020

Shipping Not Immune to a Pandemic -BIMCO

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus a pandemic. There is little doubt that this will have significant implications for the shipping industry. But to what extent? BIMCO expects that the strict containment measures imposed by governments around the world will result in substantially lower global economic growth and consequentially, lower demand for shipping. Container and dry bulk shipping are at the front line when it comes to feeling the falloutā€¦

09 Mar 2020

US Retailers Face $700 Mln Hit as Virus Disrupts Shipping

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U.S. retailers face an estimated $700 million sales hit from the coronavirus and some shipping lines are sending vessels to retrieve empty cargo containers from Los Angeles to prevent further supply disruptions.The extended shutdown of factories in China caused by the virus, travel restrictions on workers and canceled sailings by shipping lines have thrown off the movement of containers, resulting in a surplus at the Port of Los Angeles and a shortage in Germany.U.S. retailers'ā€¦

20 Feb 2020

Global Container Demand to Grow by 1-3% in 2020

For 2020, global container demand is projected to grow by 1-3%, as per forecast by A.P. Moller - Maersk.The continued weak global sentiment above all in the manufacturing sector reduces the likelihood of a material growth pick-up in 2020, although sentiment brightened a bit at the end of 2019, and some improvement can be expected on the back of stabilizing inventory dynamics, said the shipping giant.Aside from the cyclical slowing of the global economy, substantial risk to global container demand comes from the effectiveness of fiscal and monetary policy in major economies, such as the US and China.The global economy is vulnerable to a spike in oil prices caused by geopolitical tensionsā€¦

06 Feb 2020

Coronavirus Disrupts Global Container Shipping

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China's fast-spreading coronavirus is throwing the global container shipping trade out of sync, with lines re-routing cargoes and reducing calls to Chinese ports, setting the scene for months of delivery delays ahead, industry sources said.The spread of the deadly virus has shut down cities and factories in China and disrupted global air travel.China's decision to extend its Lunar New Year holiday period until Feb. 10 has compounded logistical complications, despite its ports staying open.

27 Nov 2019

CMA CGM to Raise $2bn Via Selling Terminal, Ships

French container shipping giant  CMA CGM plans to sell selected port terminals, ships and other assets to raise roughly $2 billion to finance its acquisition of CEVA Logistics, according to Reuters.Chinese state-owned conglomerate China Merchants Port has entered into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with CMA CGM to acquire interests in a portfolio of 10 terminals from the French container line and its affiliates via Terminal Link for a total consideration of $955 million.As part of the deal, China Merchants Port will buy as much as $468 million of convertible bonds issued by the joint venture, Terminal Link, and will loan as much as $500 million to CMA CGM.CMA CGM is also raising about $860 million from a ship sale and lease-back deal.

14 Nov 2019

Yang Ming Sees Weaker Demand

Taiwanese ocean shipping company Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation takes a hit with a net loss of about USD 42 million for the third quarter and sees signs of "weaker demand" in the container market.Yang Ming said that according to analyst firm Alphalinerā€™s latest projections, annual capacity growth is forecast at 3.7% and global throughput growth for 2019 is estimated at only 2.5%, which suggests a softer market demand than was previously expected.Meanwhile, the container shipping market remains vulnerable to trade uncertainties and geopolitical tensions. It is unclear the extent of potential impact those tensions and uncertainties will have on demand.Despite unpredictable market conditionsā€¦

17 Sep 2019

Evergreen Orders Ten Ships

Taiwanese shipping line Evergreen has confirmed its plans to build a total of ten 23,000 TEU containerships.According to a stock exchange filing, the new vessels would be built at three shipyards  in South Korea and China.According to the reports from the South China Morning Post, the enormous order will cost Evergreen anywhere between US$1.4 billion and US$1.6 billion. It is estimated that each vessel will cost between $140 million and $160 million.The new vessels could see Evergreen become the sixth biggest carrier line in the world, overtaking major Japanese alliance Ocean Network Express (ONE).Six of the vessels will built at Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in South Koreaā€¦

13 Aug 2019

Yang Ming Reports Net Loss of $41mln in Q2

Taiwanese ocean shipping company Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation reported a consolidated revenues of about  NTD 40.4 billion (USD 1.3 billion) for the second quarter of 2019, up 20.24% compared to the same period of prior year.Business volumes increased by 5% year-on-year to 1.35 million TEUs. Net loss for second quarter of the year was NTD 1.27 billion (USD 40.99 million).Meanwhile, Yang Mingā€™s consolidated revenues for the first half of 2019 rose by 16.77% compared with the same period in the previous year to NTD 75.48 billion (USD 2.44 billion), an increase in business volume of 5% to 2.64 million TEUs. The net loss for the first half year was NTD 1.95 billion (USD 62.94 million).As reported by analyst firm Alphalinerā€¦

27 Jun 2019

Shipping Companies: Is Bigger Better?

Ā© Julien/Adobe Stock

ā€œIf consolidation was the solution to all that ails shipping, then container liner companies would be super profitable. They are not. In ā€˜commoditizedā€™ sectors of the shipping industry, which by now includes pretty much everything apart from very small niche markets, there is hardly any economies of scale at the company level. As long as bigger is not in fact much better, then meaningful consolidation will not happen.ā€Dr. Roar Adland, visiting scholar at MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics and Professor at the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH).Like any other businessā€¦

15 May 2019

Cosco Eyes PIL Takeover

After buying several container factories from its smaller competitor Singapore-based shipping company Pacific International Lines (PIL), Chinaā€™s Cosco Shipping Holdings Co. is eyeing it as a potential takeover target.The Chinese state-run ocean carrier  had bought part of debt-ridden PILā€™s container-manufacturing business, and executives at the Chinese carrier believe they could wrap up a deal for the entire business if family-owned PILā€™s owners decide to sell, reported WSJ.Cosco Shipping is looking  to expand its footprint in developing markets and a take over would be an edge towards deeper logistics services beyond conventional ocean shippingā€¦

25 Mar 2019

Yang Ming Reports $219mln Loss for 2018

Taiwanese global shipping and logistics services company Yang Ming Marine Transportation Corp. it had a net loss of $218.5 million in 2018, with operating results significantly impacted by higher fuel prices.According to a stock exchange annoucement from the ocean shipping company based in Keelung, its consolidated revenues of 2018 totaled NTD 141.83 billion (USD 4.70 billion), up 8.21 % compared with NTD 131.08 billion (USD 4.35 billion) in revenue from previous year.Volumes in 2018 increased to 5,232 thousand TEUs, up 11% year over year, it said.Yang Mingā€™s 2018 operating results have been significantly impacted by higher global bunker fuel prices, which increased by 31.17% compared with the previous year.

26 Feb 2019

Mega Ships Affect Freight Rates: Xeneta

Short-term container rates on the China Main ports to North Europe Main ports have seen a slight drop since the beginning of the year. However, compared to Spring and Autumn 2018, overall the industry sees an increase, said a report from Xeneta, the ocean freight price benchmarking and market intelligence platform transforming the shipping and logistics industry.Xeneta reports rates on the up, with February 7, 2019 ticking in at USD1700 market average rate for a 40' box. Also, bunker prices are not as outrageous as before. Cargo from China to the United States has been moving at a record pace, but a slowdown is expected for the mainā€¦

11 May 2018

Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation Reports Higher Revenue

Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation said that the consolidated revenues of Q1 totaled NTD 31.03 billion (USD 1.07 billion), up 2.58% compared with NTD 30.25 billion (USD 1.04 billion) in revenue from previous year. The companyā€™s net loss, after tax, was NTD 1.95 billion (USD 67 million), EPS NTD-0.75. Volumes in 2018 Q1 also increased to 1.22 million TEUs, up 9% year over year. Under an improving container shipping market, Yang Ming has returned to profitability last year. In spite of the typical first quarter slack season, the financial report has shown continued year-on-year growth in volume and revenue which was better than expected, and also demonstrates the progress of Yang Mingā€™s strategy and global efficiency enhancement.

10 Aug 2018

Yang Ming Sinks into Red

Taiwanese ocean carrier Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation (Yang Ming) registered a net loss of  NTD3.81 billion (USD 129.1 million) for Q2.However, the Q2 consolidated revenues total NTD33.6 billion (USD1.14 billion) was up 1.12% from the same period in the previous year. The business volume of 1.29 million TEUs rose 11.84% year-on-year.In the meantime, for the first half of 2018, Yang Mingā€™s consolidated revenues totaled NTD64.6 billion (USD2.19 billion), up 1.81% compared with the same period in the previous year. The first half 2018 business volume totaled 2.52 million TEUs, climbing 10.28% from the same period in the previous year.

17 Aug 2018

Container Shipping Bankruptcy Lends Insight on Potential Fallout from Trade War

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Global trade tensions have captured headlines in recent months, as the imposition of a series of tariffs and counter-tariffs by various global trade counterparts has raised questions about the possibility of a trade war. Such development could potentially have an impact on global trade flows, and, consequently, the companies which facilitate international movement of goods.Though the situation is still developing and the final impact is uncertain, Gregory Draco, the Chief U.S. Economist at Oxford, predicted in July that the tariffs would create an 0.1 percent to 0.2 percent drag on U.S. GDP.