Shipping emissions in ports are substantial, accounting for 18 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, 0.4 million tonnes of NOx, 0.2 million of SOx and 0.03 million tonnes of PM10 in 2011, according to an International Transport Forum's report. Around 85 percent of emissions come from containerships and tankers. Containerships have short port stays, but high emissions during these stays.
The International Maritime Organization has decided to make it mandatory to weigh loaded containers before they are transported by sea. The initiative is designed to enhance safety and prevent pollution of the marine environment.
Global liquefied natural gas (LNG) trade is booming, and Australia will play a growing role in the Asian market despite increasing competition and cost pressures, according to the 2014 Gas Market Report that was recently released by the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics (BREE).
Debt levels at China's 200 biggest companies increased by five times between 2007 and 2013 and financial pressures on them will likely intensify as the economy continues to cool, Standard & Poor's said.
South Korea and China agreed on a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) that is expected to create the largest economic bloc in Asia. Once implemented, the Korea-China FTA will significantly boost bilateral trade between China, the world's second-largest economy, and South Korea, the fourth-largest in Asia.
China will contribute $40bn to set up a Silk Road infrastructure fund to boost connectivity across Asia, President Xi Jinping announced on Saturday, the latest Chinese project to spread the largesse of its own economic growth.
New York-based Natural Resources Defense Council has released a report on air pollution in China citing shipping as a major contributor and recommending the introduction of emission control areas.
As Ebola persists in West Africa, shipping lines and traders are tweaking their contracts to protect themselves if the disease puts crews at risk of infection or prevents vessels calling at affected ports.
Despite high hopes for Arctic business from mining to shipping as the ice melts rapidly and temperatures rise twice as fast as the global average, few firms say the sums still make sense.
A shortage of transportation equipment and possible labor disruptions at the Los Angeles/Long Beach port complex, the nation's busiest, is delaying shipping containers for up to three weeks, threatening timely delivery to retailers for the holiday season.
