The Red Sea is wedged narrowly between Africa and the Middle East and connects the Indian Ocean to the Suez Canal and Mediterranean Sea. For centuries, the waterway has been vital for moving goods between Europe and Asia.
The Year of the Dragon, the most auspicious of animals in the Chinese zodiac, is upon us. What does the following year have in store for shipping’s fortunes? Maritime CEO is back with a unique annual outlook looking at the prospects for the main shipping sectors, as well as having deep dives into the Chinese economy, ship finance and shipmanagement. The data-packed magazine also features in-depth looks at what maritime can expect in terms of green and digital tech with more than 300 of the industry’s most famous names polled to create an incisive, must read for shipping’s c-suite making big investment decisions over the coming 12 months. Kicking off this week’s coverage of the magazine, we turn to the container sector.
State-owned carrier Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company (UDP) has announced it is planning to launch container shipping on the Middle and Upper Danube River. The company said that the Danube route will offer a new alternative to Ukrainian exporters and carriers, who have had limited options since the beginning of the Russian invasion in 2022. Consultations are ongoing with shippers on the required number of containers needed to form the first caravans.
The White House on Wednesday announced a multi-billion dollar maritime infrastructure plan that would restart the domestic production of container cranes to address the cybersecurity threat from Chinese-made cranes operating in ports around the United States.
LOWELL, Ark. — J.B. Hunt will acquire all of Walmart’s domestic intermodal containers and chassis as part of a new long-term intermodal contract with the nation’s largest retailer.
Walmart, which has been a J.B. Hunt customer for decades, had 14,100 WAMU containers in its fleet as of April 2023, but that figure is now between 15,000 and 16,000 boxes, says Jason Hilsenbeck, president of LoadMatch and Drayage.com. The addition of the Walmart boxes will push J.B. Hunt’s already industry-largest container fleet over the 132,000 mark.
January witnessed a 9.2% year-over-year increase in inbound containers. This rise represents the latest reading in four consecutive months of growth, a beacon of positive momentum after a challenging period dominated by the post-pandemic downturn.
Two years after Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s external trading relationship has stabilized. Following a drastic collapse of more than 50 percent of imports in the immediate aftermath of the attack, Russian imports have seemingly returned to their 2019 average. Integral to this recovery is the booming trading relationship between Moscow and Beijing. While Chinese exports to the rest of the world have grown by 29 percent since 2021, Chinese exports with Russia over the same period have risen by over 121 percent. Beijing is now a key supplier of both industrial and consumer goods, helping Moscow keep its domestic economy afloat as it sustains the war effort in the face of G7 punitive economic measures.
Vietnam’s exports are showing signs of recovery, driven by computer, electronics and smartphones, according to investment fund VinaCapital.
Exports in January surged 42% year-on-year to $33.6 billion, a turnaround from a decline last year, the first drop since the 2008-09 global financial crisis.
India, the world’s largest producer of banana, has swiftly moved to take advantage of the space created by Latin American country Ecquador in Russian market as a Mumbai-based exporter has sent a consignment of 20 tonnes (1540 boxes) of bananas to from India to Russia via sea route.
BANGKOK — The Thai economy expanded 1.9% in 2023, slowing from a revised 2.5% growth the previous year due to weak exports, official data released on Monday showed.
The gross domestic product for the October-December quarter grew 1.7% from a year earlier, stronger than the 1.5% growth in the July-September quarter due to robust tourism and rising consumption, according to the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC), a government agency.
RIYADH: UAE’s non-oil foreign trade reached a record-breaking 3.5 trillion dirhams ($953 billion) in 2023, significantly increasing from the 2.2 trillion dirhams recorded the year before.
Trade between the country and its top 10 crucial foreign partners expanded by 26 percent last year, as stated by Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, in a post on the social media platform X on Sunday.
ISTANBUL, Feb 19 (Reuters) – A U.S. threat to hit financial firms doing business with Russia with sanctions has chilled Turkish-Russian trade, disrupting or slowing some payments for both imported oil and Turkish exports, according to seven sources familiar with the matter.
The U.S. executive order in December did not explicitly target energy but it has complicated some Turkish payments for Russian crude as well as Russian payments for a broader range of Turkish exports, the sources said.
According to GEOSTAT, with a 13.7% share in Georgia’s exports of $338.6 million, Kyrgyzstan took the top spot in the ranking of the largest export destinations.
The promotion of Kyrgyzstan among export countries was caused by the re-export of cars.
Import from Kyrgyzstan increased slightly last month. In January 2024, Georgia bought $430.5 thousand worth of products from Kyrgyzstan, and in 2023, $356.1 thousand.
The ban on export of onion will continue till its previously announced deadline of March 31 as the government is keen to keep prices under check and ensure domestic availability, a top official said on Tuesday.
The composite PMI increased from 47.9 to 48.9 in February, indicating that the eurozone’s economic slump is easing. The impact of the Red Sea disruptions on eurozone production appears to be easing, but services inflation remains a hurdle for bets on early ECB rate hikes.
After a prolonged lobbying campaign by Kazakhstan, China has agreed to lift import bans on Kazakh meat. But it may take a while for Kazakh officials to enjoy the fruits of their diplomatic labors, as logistics bottlenecks continue to hinder cross-border freight rail traffic.
The Chinese decision covers the importation of Kazakh poultry, pork and beef, according to a Kazakh Agriculture Ministry statement. The ban on Kazakh poultry products had been in effect since 2005. Restrictions on pork and beef took hold in 2022, following an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease among livestock.
During the first month of the year, Uruguay exported 52.935 tons of beef, an 11,5% increase over the same period in 2023. However the overall income for the shipments was up 7.9%, and this was because export prices on average were down 3.3%.
Although there has been a 15.7% decrease compared to last year, China remained the primary market for beef exports in January, accounting for 39%. Sales to Israel constituted 2%, and to the European Union 12%. Both Israel and the European Union significantly increased their demand this January 2024, with Israel up by 83.4% and the European Union by 47.9%.
