Cargo owners are becoming more concerned about risks and are shifting their business to shipping lines deemed more financially stable after the collapse of South Korea's Hanjin Shipping Co Ltd, top shipping executives said.
Seaborne shipments passed 10 billion tons for the first time ever in 2015, up 2.1 percent from 9.8 billion tons the year before - the slowest pace of growth in the industry since 2009, according to the UNCTAD Review of Maritime Transport 2016. The report says future growth looks uncertain.
The members of the new Ocean Alliance, CMA CGM, COSCO Container Lines, Evergreen Line and Orient Overseas Container Line, have announced their proposed "day one" trading network. The Alliance is the largest shipping alliance in the world, and the partners will operate 40 services on the East-West trades with around 100 ports of call and almost 500 port pairs.
CaroTrans, a global non-vessel operating common carrier (NVOCC) and ocean freight consolidator, has announced a new Northern Europe service connection with the addition of a direct Atlanta-Gothenburg LCL service. The service has a 21-day transit time, and a Gothenburg-to-Atlanta service will soon follow.
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has unveiled a new recognition program for clean operators that will help them to get ahead of the pack for transit bookings. The ACP calls the new system "environmental premium ranking."
Citing a rising demand for logistics across the Southeast Asia region, Dachser USA Air & Sea Logistics has announced new offices in Vietnam, Hong Kong and India. Dachser USA, a U.S.-based subsidiary of Germany's Dachser SE, said the new locations have been set up in Hanoi, the New Territories of Hong Kong and Mumbai.
An in-depth analysis of Q3 container shipping costs revealed positive trends for the container carrier segment, according to Xeneta, a market intelligence company for containerized ocean freight. However, the market remains unpredictable, with the 'Hanjin Effect' ebbing away, Xeneta says.
South Korea's finance minister has announced the government plans to support orders of 250 or more vessels by 2020 to help local shipbuilders. The government plans to establish a state-backed ship financing company with an initial capital of 1 trillion won ($871.73m) to help improve the financial health of Korean shipping companies.
The Stifel Logistics Confidence Index - which measure logistics industry outlook - remained below the neutral mark in October at 49.4, but once more noted a slight improvement against the previous month, according to global logistics researcher Transport Intelligence. In a sign that the bankruptcy of Hanjin Shipping has had little overall effect upon the container shipping industry, the October Sea Freight Confidence Index remained unchanged from September, at 49.0 points.
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