Category: Containers

  • Panama Canal rebounds as container and LPG volumes rise

    Panama Canal rebounds as container and LPG volumes rise While the Red Sea has roared back to the front pages of the shipping press this week, and the Black Sea remains blighted by war, one other chokepoint that has caused supply chain chaos in recent years has reported that it is operating at full capacity.…

  • Navios Maritime adds to South Korean boxship newbuild series

    Navios Maritime adds to South Korean boxship newbuild series Greece’s Navios Maritime Partners is ramping up its exposure in the container shipping sector with a fresh order for four modern boxships at South Korea’s HJ Shipbuilding & Construction. The Angeliki Frangou-led company is understood to have signed for four 8,000 teu vessels, in a deal…

  • Sinokor books four boxships at HD Hyundai yards

    Sinokor books four boxships at HD Hyundai yards South Korean shipowner Sinokor Merchant Marine has placed an order with compatriot shipbuilder HD Hyundai, securing four containerships in a deal valued at KRW 834.8bn ($611m). HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, the holding company of HD Hyundai, revealed the contract in a stock exchange filing, without…

  • Red Sea shipping crisis deteriorates rapidly as attacks intensify

    Red Sea shipping crisis deteriorates rapidly as attacks intensify The security situation in the Red Sea has taken a sharp turn for the worse over the past 48 hours, with back-to-back attacks on merchant vessels and Israeli airstrikes targeting multiple Yemeni ports. Yesterday, the Liberian-flagged bulk carrier Eternity C, operated by Greek firm Cosmoship Management,…

  • Heidmar enters ownership space with first boxship acquisition

    Heidmar enters ownership space with first boxship acquisition Athens-based pool operator and shipmanager Heidmar has announced its first-ever vessel acquisition, marking a strategic shift in the Nasdaq-listed company’s evolution from pure-play management to asset-backed operations. The Pankaj Khanna-led outfit has struck a deal to buy the 2008-built 1,702 teu feeder containership A Obelix for $25.25m.…

  • Danes press ahead with project to ship CO2 in containers

    Danes press ahead with project to ship CO2 in containers Danish firm DecarbonICE is looking to develop a full CO2 transport value chain with the gas in solid form, otherwise known as dry ice. The company wants to show the benefits of this kind of transfer compared to transporting CO2 in liquid form in pressurised…

  • Splash Wrap: Trump leads headlines in a calmer week for shipping

    Splash Wrap: Trump leads headlines in a calmer week for shipping Compared to almost every other week of 2025, from a shipping news/geopolitical point of view this week has been comparatively calm. Nevertheless, the word Trump featured in more Splash headlines than any other word once again. The big news at the start of the…

  • White House tariff deadline looms large on liner agenda

    White House tariff deadline looms large on liner agenda Donald Trump and tariffs are very much back in shipping news headlines, with one key deal seemingly agreed and plenty of others under negotiation ahead of a deadline next week. The July 9 expiration date for the White House’s pause on April’s reciprocal tariffs on a…

  • TS Lines locks in up to 10 newbuilds at Huangpu Wenchong

    TS Lines locks in up to 10 newbuilds at Huangpu Wenchong Taiwan’s TS Lines has bolstered its newbuilding programme through a new deal with a Chinese shipyard, Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding The intra-Asia focused carrier has commissioned five firm and five optional 5,000 teu vessels, each priced at about $62.5m and scheduled for delivery in 2028,…

  • MSC ramps up megamax expansion with $1.2bn shipbuilding deal in China

    MSC ramps up megamax expansion with $1.2bn shipbuilding deal in China Gianluigi Aponte’s Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) is pressing ahead with megamax containership fleet expansion through a new shipbuilding deal in China. The Swiss-based liner giant has ordered up to six 22,000 teu newbuilds from China Merchants Heavy Industries’ Haimen shipyard. Shipbuilding sources estimate each…

  • Seacon tackles shipping talent gap with electric training boxship order

    Seacon tackles shipping talent gap with electric training boxship order In a move to bridge the shipping talent gap and advance green maritime education, China’s Seacon Shipping has signed a contract with Fujian Mawei Shipbuilding for the construction of what is being hailed as the world’s first teaching electric containership. The 406 teu vessel, designed…

  • The week in shipping: Iran dominates the headlines

    The week in shipping: Iran dominates the headlines Starting today, Splash will be bringing readers a weekly wrap to digest the important shipping news of the past few days. This complements Daily Splash, our free newsletter published Monday through Friday, as well as Splash Extra, our monthly digest. Conflict with Iran dominated the headlines in…

  • Latsco in for Huangpu Wenchong boxship brace

    Latsco in for Huangpu Wenchong boxship brace Greece’s Latsco Shipping is expanding its footprint in the containership sector with newbuildings in China. Shipbuilding sources in Greece have linked the Paris Kassidokostas-Latsis-led diversified owner, traditionally linked to tankers and gas carriers, to a deal for two 1,900 teu vessels at Huangpu Wenchong. The CSSC-affiliated yard is…

  • Aristides Pittas sells majority stake in EuroHoldings to Latsis-linked Marla Investments

    Aristides Pittas sells majority stake in EuroHoldings to Latsis-linked Marla Investments EuroHoldings, the NASDAQ-listed container shipping company spun off from Euroseas earlier this year, has announced a change in ownership following the sale of 51.04% of its outstanding common shares to Marla Investments, an entity affiliated with Greece’s Latsis family. The shares were sold by…

  • ClarkSea Index hits year-high ahead of American strikes on Iran

    ClarkSea Index hits year-high ahead of American strikes on Iran The cross-sector ClarkSea Index, a weighted average of tanker, bulk carrier, containership and gas carrier earnings managed by Clarksons Research, hit a new high for 2025 on Friday, ahead of the decision by the US to strike Iran, something that will likely see the index,…

  • Trump softens on Iran intervention amid maritime chaos in Gulf

    Trump softens on Iran intervention amid maritime chaos in Gulf Oil prices dipped 2% in early trading today as Donald Trump appeared to step back from joining Israel’s attacks on Iran, while the waters in the Middle East remain busy, and dangerous thanks to vastly increased GPS spoofing in the region in the week since…

  • Freight market reacts to soaring Middle East tensions

    Freight market reacts to soaring Middle East tensions Tensions in the Middle East have reached a boiling point this week as senior US officials reportedly prepare for a potential military strike on Iran, a move that threatens to ignite a wider regional conflict. According to a Bloomberg report citing individuals familiar with the matter, the…

  • GPS jamming on the rise as Israel-Iran conflict enters fourth day

    GPS jamming on the rise as Israel-Iran conflict enters fourth day The conflict between Israel and Iran stretched into a fourth consecutive day on Monday, rattling global energy markets and placing the maritime industry on edge. While Israeli airstrikes have so far avoided directly targeting Iran’s crude oil infrastructure, a reported explosion at a natural…

  • Eitzen targets world’s largest all-electric boxships

    Eitzen targets world’s largest all-electric boxships Norway’s Eitzen Group has set out to build battery-powered containerships that could potentially become the world’s largest of their kind. Axel Eitzen’s company Eitzen Avanti, which oversees a network that includes Christiania Shipping, which specialises in chemical tankers and also operates LPG vessels, as well as all-electric shipping player…

  • Kerala hit by third maritime incident as court orders arrest of MSC ship

    Kerala hit by third maritime incident as court orders arrest of MSC ship Kerala’s coast is witnessing an alarming spate of maritime mishaps, with a third ship-related incident reported within a span of weeks, prompting legal action, firefighting operations, and mounting concerns over environmental and economic fallout. On Thursday, the Kerala High Court ordered the…

  • Blystad signs for boxship newbuilds in China

    Blystad signs for boxship newbuilds in China Norwegian-based Blystad Group is set to expand its boxship exposure with three newbuildings from China. Brokers report that Arne Blystad’s investment firm has signed up for 3,000 teu vessels at Penglai Zhongbai Jinglu Ship Industry. The total value of the order stands at approximately $129m, with deliveries scheduled…

  • Large-cap carrier club grows to six

    Large-cap carrier club grows to six Container shipping has proven popular in recent weeks with investors on the back of surging, trade war-related freight rates, with Alphaliner reporting that as of last month, there are now six listed carriers officially deemed large cap with market valuations of more than $10bn. Wan Hai of Taiwan is…

  • ADNOC L&S lands $530m deal with petchem giant Borouge

    ADNOC L&S lands $530m deal with petchem giant Borouge ADNOC Logistics & Services (ADNOC L&S) has secured a 15-year contract with its compatriot polyolefins major, Borouge, to manage logistics for more than half of its annual petrochemicals output. The deal, valued at $531m, covers port management, container handling, and feeder container ship services for the…

  • Four missing in Wan Hai boxship blaze off India

    Four missing in Wan Hai boxship blaze off India A fire and explosion aboard the Singapore-flagged containership Wan Hai 503 have left four crew members missing off the southwest coast of India. The incident occurred on Monday around 12.30 hrs Singapore time, some 80 km southwest of Azhikkal, Kerala. The 4,333 teu vessel, operated by…

  • Historic surge on the transpacific buoys liner profits

    Historic surge on the transpacific buoys liner profits Drewry’s weekly World Container Index (WCI) increased 41% to $3,527 per feu yesterday, the second highest leap dollars-wise since the index was created, with the busy transpacific leading the way once again amid a brief trade detente between the world’s two largest economies, the US and China.…

  • Red Sea shipping rebounds 60% as Houthi attacks decline

    Red Sea shipping rebounds 60% as Houthi attacks decline The volume of ship traffic in the Red Sea has increased by 60% since August 2024, now reaching 36 to 37 ships per day. Despite the rebound, volumes remain well below pre-crisis levels, according to Rear Admiral Vasileios Gryparis, commander of the EU’s Aspides naval mission.…

  • HHLA buys majority stake in Ukrainian intermodal terminal

    HHLA buys majority stake in Ukrainian intermodal terminal Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) has decided to invest in another terminal in Ukraine. The company is acquiring 60% of the shares in the Eurobridge Intermodal Terminal in Batiovo in western Ukraine. HHLA sees Ukraine as a hub for continental container transport and is simultaneously strengthening…

  • Dali VDR transcript released

    Dali VDR transcript released The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in the US has released the audio transcript from the Dali containership’s voyager data recorder (VDR) on the night of March 26 last year when it slammed into Baltimore’s largest bridge, creating one of the most high-profile shipping accidents of the decade to date.  The…

  • Vietnam’s Hai An Transport orders up to four boxships in China

    Vietnam’s Hai An Transport orders up to four boxships in China Vietnamese shipping and logistics company Hai An Transport and Stevedoring has launched a new fleet expansion programme with the order of up to four containerships from Chinese builder Jiangsu New Yangzi Shipbuilding. The deal includes two firm vessels and two optional units, each with…

  • Capital Maritime adds to Korean boxship newbuild series

    Capital Maritime adds to Korean boxship newbuild series Greece’s Capital Maritime has firmed up a pair of 8,800 teu newbuildings in South Korea, lifting its recent containership orders to 20 ships worth nearly $1.6bn. Newbuilding brokers have named the Evangelos Marinakis-led company behind the two LNG dual-fuel units booked for construction at HD Hyundai Samho…

  • Appeals court temporarily reinstates Trump tariffs

    Appeals court temporarily reinstates Trump tariffs A federal appeals court has reinstated one of president Donald Trump’s broadest tariff actions, just one day after the US Court of International Trade ruled the move unconstitutional and blocked its implementation—triggering renewed uncertainty across global shipping and supply chains. On Thursday, the US Court of Appeals for the…

  • Euroseas cashes in on 20-year-old post-panamax boxship

    Euroseas cashes in on 20-year-old post-panamax boxship Greek containership owner Euroseas is set to lock in a strong return by selling a 20-year-old post-panamax vessel acquired less than four years ago. The Nasdaq-listed company has offloaded the 2005 Koyo Dock-built 6,350 teu Marcos V to an undisclosed, unaffiliated buyer for $50m. Euroseas originally bought the…

  • Federal court blocks Trump’s tariffs

    Federal court blocks Trump’s tariffs In the latest twist in the trade war unleashed by Donald Trump, an American federal court has blocked the president’s sweeping tariffs. The Court of International Trade has ruled that the emergency law invoked by the White House does not give the president unilateral authority to impose tariffs on nearly…

  • ONE and Hapag-Lloyd line up more than 30 newbuild contracts

    ONE and Hapag-Lloyd line up more than 30 newbuild contracts Alphaliner is reporting that Ocean Network Express (ONE) and Hapag-Lloyd are close to finalising big orders in Asia as the record global container orderbook nears 10m teu. Singapore-based, Japanese-owned ONE is in discussions with HD Hyundai in South Korea for up to twelve 16,000 teu…

  • China United Lines reenters booming transpacific trades

    China United Lines reenters booming transpacific trades China United Lines (CUL) is making the most of the boom times suddenly being seen on the transpacific, with news from Linerlytica, a consultancy, that it reenter the tradelane with the launch of its Trans Pacific West Coast 1 (TP1) service calling at Shekou, Ningbo, Qingdao, Long Beach,…

  • CMA CGM signs $600m Vietnam box terminal deal

    CMA CGM signs $600m Vietnam box terminal deal France’s CMA CGM has penned an agreement with Saigon Newport Corporation (SNP) to develop a new $600m deepwater terminal in Haiphong, northern Vietnam. The deal covers the design, construction, and operation of the Lach Huyen terminals 7 and 8, located in Lach Huyen area in Haiphong. The…

  • Boxport congestion spreads from Europe to the US and China

    Boxport congestion spreads from Europe to the US and China Port congestion seen across key Northern European hubs is intensifying and is now spreading to China and the US, a situation expected to worsen as a result of Donald Trump’s on/off tariff strategy.  Compounding the situation, low water levels on the Rhine are limiting barge…

  • Second officer charged with negligent navigation over last week’s high-profile grounding in Norway

    Second officer charged with negligent navigation over last week’s high-profile grounding in Norway A Ukrainian second officer aboard the container vessel NCL Salten has been charged with negligent navigation following a grounding incident early Thursday morning near Trondheim, Norway. The ship ran aground just meters from a summer home in Byneset, narrowly avoiding significant property…

  • Ningbo Ocean Shipping picks yard for 2,700 teu series

    Ningbo Ocean Shipping picks yard for 2,700 teu series Ningbo Ocean Shipping Co (NBOSCO) has selected a shipyard for its latest series of containership newbuildings. Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding has won a tender to build four 2,700 teu vessels for the Shanghai-listed subsidiary of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port Group, which earlier this year lined up $192m for fleet…

  • MAN Energy Solutions reveals world’s most powerful methanol engine

    MAN Energy Solutions reveals world’s most powerful methanol engine Ship engine manufacturer MAN Energy Solutions has developed the world’s most powerful two-stroke methanol engine. The engine, rated at 82,440kW at 80rpm, is currently being built by Chinese licensee CSSC-MES Diesel. This will be the first engine of 12 bound for a series of a dozen…

  • MSC invests in Ukrainian inland logistics

    MSC invests in Ukrainian inland logistics Swiss-based Medlog, a growing inland cargo business of the world’s largest liner, Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC), has made its entry into Ukrainian logistics. Local media report Medlog has bought 50% of the Ukrainian intermodal logistics operator N’UNIT (New Ukrainian Network of Intermodal Terminals) and a 25% stake in the…

  • Newbuild prices edge down

    Newbuild prices edge down Latest data from Clarksons Research shows that after three bumper years of orders, the appetite for newbuilds among owners is weak, down 57% year-on-year, which has also seen newbuild prices finally edge down. Clarksons is reporting newbuild prices are down 1.2% from the start of 2025, though they are still historically…

  • Shanghai spot box rates to US west coast leap 31% in just one week

    Shanghai spot box rates to US west coast leap 31% in just one week Friday’s weekly publishing of spot rates from the Shanghai Shipping Exchange has given a stark picture of the frenzy building on the transpacific. Rates from China to the US west coast leapt 31% week-on-week, while rates to the east coast jumped…

  • Liners confident of pushing through rate rises on surging transpacific business

    Liners confident of pushing through rate rises on surging transpacific business Liner executives are reporting a dramatic pick-up in box bookings between China and the US this week as a 90-day mini-reprieve in the tariff war between the world’s two largest economies gets underway. The busier liner bookings have yet to translate into an immediate…

  • Minerva buys another modern boxship

    Minerva buys another modern boxship Greek owner Minerva has bought the three-year-old, 1,781 teu Mindoro boxship from Germany’s Briese Schiffahrt for $31.5m. The sale makes a tidy profit for the German owner, who ordered the ship in 2021 for $26m, according to data from Alphaliner. The ship has been renamed Little Symphony and it remains…

  • Suez Canal offers discount in bid to lure boxships back

    Suez Canal offers discount in bid to lure boxships back Egypt’s Suez Canal will offer a 15% discount for the next three months on transit fees for containerships of approximately 13,500 teu and above in terms of capacity, to encourage trade back, with recent headlines suggesting the Red Sea shipping crisis is coming to a close. The…

  • Tariff truce tipped to usher in covid era uptick in box fortunes

    Tariff truce tipped to usher in covid era uptick in box fortunes The 90-day tariff ceasefire between the world’s top two economies could see covid era surges in shipments and box freight rates, one leading analyst has suggested.  The US and China have agreed to slash reciprocal tariffs by 115% for the next 90 days.…

  • MSC ship aground off Jeddah, likely victim of GPS spoofing

    MSC ship aground off Jeddah, likely victim of GPS spoofing Three days on from grounding off Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the 7,000 teu MSC Antonia remains stuck in the Red Sea, with vessel tracking showing the ship was likely the victim of GPS jamming.  Analysis from Windward, a maritime analytics firm, has highlighted the spoofing patterns…

  • US and China agree to slash tariffs

    US and China agree to slash tariffs In a significant curtailment of the trade war between the world’s two largest economies, the United States and China have agreed to considerably slash tariffs for the next 90 days. As part of the deal reached in Geneva over the weekend, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said both countries…

  • Master of Chinese boxship accused of severing Baltic gas pipeline appears in HK court

    Master of Chinese boxship accused of severing Baltic gas pipeline appears in HK court The master of the Newnew Polar Bear, a Hong Kong-flagged boxship, has been taken into custody in Hong Kong for damaging a gas pipeline in the Baltic Sea 19 months ago. Wan Wenguo, 43, appeared at a court in Hong Kong…

  • Jiangsu Ocean Shipping orders boxship quartet

    Jiangsu Ocean Shipping orders boxship quartet China’s Jiangsu Ocean Shipping (JOSCO) is expanding its containership fleet with four newbuilds contracted at compatriot yard Jiangsu Soho Chuangke Shipbuilding. The shipping arm of Jiangsu Port Group has booked a series of 3,000 teu vessels set to become the largest in its fleet. Jiangsu Ocean lists a fleet…

  • Nokia to provide private wireless to Maersk ships

    Nokia to provide private wireless to Maersk ships Danish liner giant Maersk has contracted Nokia to equip 450 vessels in its fleet with private wireless. The move is part of Maersk’s rollout of its new digital connectivity platform, OneWireless, which aims to offer real-time cargo tracking, enhanced supply chain visibility, and improved operational efficiency. “By…

  • Boxships back up across Northern Europe

    Boxships back up across Northern Europe Ports across Northern Europe are dealing with what broker Braemar describes as “serious congestion” right now.  In Antwerp, Braemar reported yesterday the yard is already at 96% capacity, and reefer plugs are overloaded at 112%. Nearly half the arriving ships are waiting for a berth, and there are 52…

  • CMA CGM signs Syrian port deal

    CMA CGM signs Syrian port deal CMA CGM has signed a 30-year deal with the Syrian government to develop Latakia port, including building a new berth and investing $260m to bolster Syria’s top port. CMA CGM has been operating at Latakia since 2009.  The new deepwater berth will be 1.5 km long with depths alongside…

  • Euroseas spinoff exploring strategic options including sale

    Euroseas spinoff exploring strategic options including sale Euroholdings, a Nasdaq-listed spinoff and subsidiary of Greek containership owner Euroseas, has initiated a search for strategic options for its business. The company, incorporated in March this year, said that its board, led by chairman Aristides Pittas, has launched a “comprehensive review of strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder…

  • OOCL signs $3bn boxship order

    OOCL signs $3bn boxship order Hong Kong’s Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) is strengthening its fleet with 14 boxship newbuildings in China worth more than $3bn. The COSCO-controlled liner operator has contracted Dalian COSCO KHI Ship Engineering (DACKS) and Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering (NACKS) to build 18,500 teu methanol dual-fuel series at $220m each.…

  • Seaspan books six containership newbuilds in China

    Seaspan books six containership newbuilds in China Seaspan has put pen to paper on more containership newbuilds at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding (SWS) in China. The Bing Chen-led tonnage provider has booked six 10,000 teu vessels with delivery likely starting in 2028. No value has been revealed for the shipbuilding contract that was concluded in renminbi…

  • CMA CGM becomes first global liner to run an Indian-flagged vessel

    CMA CGM becomes first global liner to run an Indian-flagged vessel CMA CGM has welcomed the arrival of the first Indian flagged containership registered by a major foreign carrier With a total capacity of 2,592 teu, CMA CGM Vitoria serves India on the group’s BIGEX network, which offers direct links between India, the Gulf, and…

  • RCL boosts boxship orderbook

    RCL boosts boxship orderbook Thailand’s Regional Carrier Lines (RCL) is bolstering its fleet with four additional containership newbuildings in China. The company revealed in a stock exchange filing that it will be adding a pair of 11,000 teu and 4,400 teu each in 2027 and 2028. The 11,000 teu series are costing up to $125m…

  • Iran port blast kills at least 18 and injures hundreds

    Iran port blast kills at least 18 and injures hundreds A massive explosion killed at least 18 people and left around 800 others injured near Iran’s biggest port, Bandar Abbas. The blast, which took place at Shahid Rajaee terminal on Saturday morning, damaged multiple buildings in the area and caused additional fires. Aerial footage showed…

  • Pakistan ceases all trade with India

    Pakistan ceases all trade with India Pakistan has suspended all trade with India and closed its airspace and land border. The measures follow the imposition of sanctions imposed by India after an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 people on Tuesday. The last six months saw 520 port calls of vessels between Pakistan and…

  • ZIM ordered to pay Samsung $3.7m for US demurrage violations

    ZIM ordered to pay Samsung $3.7m for US demurrage violations Israeli carrier ZIM has been ordered to pay about $3.7m to Samsung Electronics America (SEA) for violating the US Shipping Act. The American affiliate of the Korean manufacturing giant filed a complaint with the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) in October 2022, claiming Zim engaged in…

  • CMB.TECH and Golden Ocean merging to create fleet of more than 250 ships

    CMB.TECH and Golden Ocean merging to create fleet of more than 250 ships Belgium’s CMB.TECH and one of Europe’s largest dry bulk owners, Golden Ocean, have signed a term sheet for a stock-for-stock merger that will create a maritime giant with a combined fleet of more than 250 vessels. Under the agreement, unanimously approved by…

  • FMC classifies Chipolbrok as a controlled carrier

    FMC classifies Chipolbrok as a controlled carrier The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) in the US has classified the Chinese-Polish Joint Stock Shipping Company (Chipolbrok) as a controlled carrier of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and is adding it to the commission’s controlled carrier list. The company, with 31 MPPs in its fleet, is jointly…

  • Scale of blank sailings dwarfs covid era as US-China trade dries up

    Scale of blank sailings dwarfs covid era as US-China trade dries up With trade between the world’s two largest economies effectively coming to a halt thanks to US president Donald Trump’s tariff war with China, containerlines are blanking sailings on a greater scale than was witnessed at the onset of the covid pandemic five years…

  • Beijing vents fury at US port fees

    Beijing vents fury at US port fees Shipping spent the weekend digesting the news from the US where watered down plans to charge China-linked ships extra for American port calls have created considerable outrage in Beijing and Hong Kong, while causing consternation for members of the Ocean Alliance, one of the big groupings in container…

  • Russian line founded with focus on West Africa

    Russian line founded with focus on West Africa The former chairman of FESCO has formed a shipping line to provide links between West Africa and Russia. Andrei Severilov, who founded JSC A7 Holding last year, has just debuted A7 African Cargo Lines with a first link set to be established between Novorossiysk and Nigeria’s port…

  • Tar balls wash up on Canadian shoreline near grounded MSC boxship

    Tar balls wash up on Canadian shoreline near grounded MSC boxship Tar balls have emerged on beaches near to where the MSC Baltic III remains grounded on Canada’s eastern seaboard, with the boxship remaining firmly lodged in place more than two months after it ran into difficulties.  The Canadian Coast Guard has said there is…

  • US unveils much-anticipated port call fees

    US unveils much-anticipated port call fees The United States will impose fees on Chinese-built ships calling at American ports—regardless of ownership, in a ruling that the global shipping community has been waiting to hear about for months. The glimmer of good news for non-Chinese owners is that the final measure is less severe than the…

  • Trump’s tariffs crash world trade forecasts

    Trump’s tariffs crash world trade forecasts Many of shipping’s go-to bodies for trade forecasts are now slashing economic predictions for the year ahead in the wake of Donald Trump’s tariff war.  Creating significant alarm, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has warned global merchandise trade for 2025 could drop by as much as -1.5%, potentially becoming…

  • The carriers most exposed by Trump’s trade war with China

    The carriers most exposed by Trump’s trade war with China The chart below created by Linerlytica highlights the containerlines most exposed on the transpacific by the ongoing trade war initiated by Donald Trump, the American president, against China, that has effectively brought most business between the two largest economies in the world to a halt.…

  • Singapore’s Vasi becomes first liner casualty of 2025

    Singapore’s Vasi becomes first liner casualty of 2025 Vasi Shipping, a small Singaporean containership operator, has filed for bankruptcy. The company, founded 13 years ago, has $19m of debt owed to creditors. Previously, it operated on intra-Asia routes on three owned ships, all of which it has sold recently to try and pay back debts.…

  • CMA CGM buys into Egyptian inland port

    CMA CGM buys into Egyptian inland port French shipping and logistics giant CMA CGM has agreed to buy a 35% stake in Egypt’s October Dry Port (ODP). Officially launched in November 2023, ODP is Egypt’s first dry port and the first public-private partnership project in the Egyptian transport sector under the EBRD Green Cities program.…

  • Uptick in blank sailings as US and China trade tariff blows

    Uptick in blank sailings as US and China trade tariff blows Global supply chain managers are having to contend with more blanked container sailings as the world’s top two economies show no sign of giving ground in an escalating trade war. China responded today to US president Donald Trump’s cumulative 145% tariffs, placing 125% tariffs…

  • Tariffs on China set to dramatically alter US trade flows

    Tariffs on China set to dramatically alter US trade flows Supply chain planners are busy booking shipments from non-Chinese destinations into the US today following last night’s tariff surrender by Donald Trump, the American president.  Trump announced a 90-day pause for countries hit by higher US tariffs amid financial turmoil and a weakening dollar in…

  • Fire hits German boxship off Dutch coast

    Fire hits German boxship off Dutch coast A rescue mission is underway in the Dutch North Sea after an explosion triggered a fire on board a German-owned containership. The 1,368 teu 2009-built Victoria L suffered a blaze in the engine room around 13.00 hrs local time near Hoek van Holland. Two helicopters and multiple vessels…

  • Euroseas seals long-term boxship charter at bumper rate

    Euroseas seals long-term boxship charter at bumper rate Greek containership owner Euroseas has bagged an improved long-term charter contract for one of its feeder vessels. The 2024 HD Hyundai Mipo-built 1,800 teu Monica has been fixed for two years plus two months of options at 23,500 per day – up from $16,000 the ship is…

  • Liners draw up defensive measures in their armoury to fight Trump’s tariff war

    Liners draw up defensive measures in their armoury to fight Trump’s tariff war Global container growth is set to head into a hard reverse this year on the back of the tariff war initiated by Donald Trump, the American president, which is already seeing noticeable cargo booking cancellations in Asia.  In a post on his…

  • ZIM fixes Economou and Ofer 11,500 teu newbuild series in $2.3bn deal

    ZIM fixes Economou and Ofer 11,500 teu newbuild series in $2.3bn deal Israeli carrier ZIM is bringing in 10 LNG dual-fuel containership newbuilds on long-term charter. The New York-listed company has struck deals worth in total about $2.3bn with George Economou’s TMS Group and a shipping player affiliated with Idan Ofer’s Kenon Holdings for a…

  • Ningbo Ocean Shipping chairman resigns

    Ningbo Ocean Shipping chairman resigns Ningbo Ocean Shipping Co (NBOSCO) has announced that Zongquan Xu is stepping down as chairman and will no longer serve as a member of the company. The director and manager at Zhejiang Seaport Shipping is leaving the Shanghai-listed subsidiary of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port Group after four years at the helm. In…

  • Global shipping ‘stifled’ by Trump’s tariffs

    Global shipping ‘stifled’ by Trump’s tariffs Shipping stocks remain under severe pressure today as the world comes to terms with the immensity of Wednesday’s tariff announcements from US president Donald Trump.  The average US tariff rate has now been set at just under 25%, levels not seen since the 1930s and the days of the…

  • Trump ignites global trade war, major economies vow retaliation

    Trump ignites global trade war, major economies vow retaliation US president Donald Trump has slapped additional tariffs of 34% on imports from China, also hitting emerging manufacturing powerhouses like Vietnam and Cambodia hard, while targeting European Union imports with 20% tariffs, and adding a baseline of 10% on most goods imported to the US. As…

  • Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ arrives

    Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ arrives Donald Trump is expected to announce sweeping tariffs in a statement at the White House Rose Garden at 16:00 EST this afternoon, branding today as ‘Liberation Day’ in the latest economic shock to hit global seaborne trades in the opening months of his return to power. The scope and scale of…

  • CMA CGM sues Houston bunker supplier for $5m

    CMA CGM sues Houston bunker supplier for $5m French liner giant CMA CGM is suing GCC Supply & Trading for more than $5m at a court in Texas over an alleged case of contaminated bunkers dating back to 2023. CMA CGM claims 13 of its vessels were damaged when it took on VLSFO fuel at…

  • How the liner lineup has changed this century

    How the liner lineup has changed this century Of the 50 largest container shipping lines in the world in the year 2000, only 24 are still in existence, according to new research from Denmark’s Sea-Intelligence.  The capacity operated by these surviving carriers has grown dramatically.  Overall, they have grown their collective capacity from 2.5m teu…

  • Yang Ming signs for three Japanese newbuilds

    Yang Ming signs for three Japanese newbuilds Taiwanese shipping line Yang Ming Marine Transport has struck a deal with Japanese owner Shoei Kisen for three 8,000 teu methanol dual-fuel-ready containership newbuilds. The world’s 10th and Taiwan’s second-largest liner operator is buying the trio currently under construction at Imabari Shipbuilding, with delivery set in 2028 and…

  • Qinfeng Shipbuilding bags boxship orders

    Qinfeng Shipbuilding bags boxship orders China’s Jiangsu Qinfeng Shipbuilding has secured orders from Jiangsu Lvhang Logistics for up to six containerships. The deal, with an undisclosed value covers one firm and five optional 1,138 teu newbuilds, with the first vessel expected for delivery by November 2026. No further details have been divulged, except that the…

  • MPC Container Ships offloads seven vessels

    MPC Container Ships offloads seven vessels Oslo-listed tonnage provider MPC Container Ships (MPCC) said in a stock exchange filing that it sold five vessels en bloc, involving three 1,300 teu vessels and two 2,000 teu vessels. According to Greek media reports, the five vessels were bought by Nikolas Pateras-owned Contships Logistics. The vessels in question are…

  • Maersk seals 33-year lease extension at port of NY and NJ

    Maersk seals 33-year lease extension at port of NY and NJ AP Moller-Maersk has reached an agreement with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to extend APM Terminals Elizabeth’s lease through December 2062. Originally set to expire in 2029, the 33-year lease extension “paves the way for major infrastructure investments which will…

  • $3.5m: How much this COSCO ship might be charged when calling at a US port

    $3.5m: How much this COSCO ship might be charged when calling at a US port Public comments continue to fly into the US Trade Representative (USTR) ahead of Monday’s hearing into controversial plans to tax Chinese-built tonnage calling at US ports.  In the more than 150 submissions sent in, a considerable number have hit out…

  • Euroseas fixes charter for 2007-built boxship

    Euroseas fixes charter for 2007-built boxship Nasdaq-listed Greek containership owner Euroseas has won a time charter contract for its 4,250 teu boxship Rena P. The charter is for a minimum period of 35 to a maximum period of 37 months, at the option of the charterer, at a gross daily rate of $35,500, in direct…

  • Box charter to freight rate ratio hits record high of 289%

    Box charter to freight rate ratio hits record high of 289% Containership utilisation has slipped below 90% on many of the sector’s biggest tradelanes, while the gap between box freight rates and charter rates has hit an all-time high. Data from Linerlytica shows boxship utilisation on three of the four main tradelanes has fallen below…

  • Beijing blasts sale of Hutchison Ports

    Beijing blasts sale of Hutchison Ports CK Hutchison’s share price plunged today in Hong Kong following Beijing’s public criticism of its plans to sell the majority of its ports division to BlackRock and Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) for $22.8bn, bringing into question whether the transaction, the largest ports deal in history, will be completed. Hong…

  • Video footage of North Sea accident surfaces

    Video footage of North Sea accident surfaces Newly obtained video footage has revealed the moment the containership Solong struck the tanker Stena Immaculate off the coast of East Yorkshire on Monday. The impact and subsequent explosion were captured by Orca AI’s lookout unit Seapod mounted on the tanker Ionic Aspis anchored off the port of…

  • Captain arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter over North Sea collision

    Captain arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter over North Sea collision The captain of the containership Solong, involved in a collision with the Stena Immaculate tanker in the UK North Sea, has been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter. The incident, which took place on Monday with both ships bursting into flames after…

  • Containership likely to sink after North Sea collision

    Containership likely to sink after North Sea collision The Solong containership involved in Monday’s collision in the UK North Sea is unlikely to remain afloat, British maritime minister Mike Kane has said. “Modelling suggests that should Solong remain afloat, it will remain clear of land for the next few hours. The assessment of HM Coastguard…

  • Triton buys Global Container International

    Triton buys Global Container International Container leasing giant Triton has agreed to acquire Global Container International (GCI) in a deal valued at more than $1bn, including outstanding debt. Boston-based GCI was established in 2018 by a team of experienced container industry executives in partnership with investment vehicles managed by Wafra. The transaction, expected to close…

  • Preliminary signs of a two-tier freight market emerge as US crackdown on Chinese-built tonnage nears

    Preliminary signs of a two-tier freight market emerge as US crackdown on Chinese-built tonnage nears The first signs of a two-tier market are emerging in anticipation of Donald Trump’s likely penalisation of Chinese-built tonnage.  Broker BRS is reporting Chinese-linked ships are now becoming “far less attractive” for long time charters due to the likelihood that,…

  • Fires continue to burn in North Sea following yesterday’s ship collision

    Fires continue to burn in North Sea following yesterday’s ship collision The search for a missing crewmember from the containership Solong that struck the tanker Stena Immaculate in the UK North Sea has been called off as fires aboard both ships continued to burn overnight. The 140-m-long Solong, owned by Hamburg-based Ernst Russ, hit the…

  • Hapag-Lloyd’s ports arm takes over terminal in Le Havre

    Hapag-Lloyd’s ports arm takes over terminal in Le Havre Hapag-Lloyd’s terminal and infrastructure division Hanseatic Global Terminals (HGT) has acquired a 60% stake in CNMP (Compagnie Nouvelle de Manutentions Portuaires), operator of Atlantique container terminal in Le Havre, France. The remaining 40% of the shares in CNMP will continue to be held by temperature-controlled food…