China Unveils Retaliatory Tariffs as Dispute Escalates
China unveiled on Friday retaliatory tariffs against about $75 billion worth of U.S. goods, putting an additional 10% on top of existing rates in the latest tit-for-tat exchange in a protracted dispute between the world's top two economies.The latest salvo from China comes after the United States unveiled tariffs on an additional $300 billion worth of Chinese goods, including consumer electronics, scheduled to go into effect in two stages on Sept. 1 and Dec. 15.China's commerce ministry said in a statement it would impose additional tariffs of 5% or 10% on a total of 5…
Labor Secretary to Intervene in U.S. Port Dispute
A partial shutdown of 29 U.S. West Coast ports stretched into a third day on Monday ahead of the U.S. labor secretary's scheduled arrival in San Francisco to try to broker a settlement ending months of disruptions on the cargo-clogged docks. President Barack Obama, under pressure to weigh in on a labor dispute that has rippled through the U.S. commercial supply chain and beyond, said on Saturday he would dispatch Labor Secretary Tom Perez to meet with the two sides in the conflict. But there was no word on timing of the trip until Monday, when a spokeswoman for the labor secretary said Perez was due to arrive in San Francisco on Tuesday to join in talks between the shipping companies and the union representing 20,000 dockworkers.
Container Ship 2013 Capacity to Outpace Demand
A.P. Moller-Maersk expects container ship capacity to grow 11% this year, outpacing demand, forcing owners to take corrective measures. The industry is likely to scrap more vessels, sail them at even slower speeds and idle more ships in order to balance supply with growth, Soren Skou, the chief executive of Maersk Line, told media at a news conference in Singapore, as reported by Fox Business News. Slow steaming, industry term for slowing down ships to save fuel, will reduce effective industry-wide capacity by 2% 2013. In 2013, 2% of the global container vessel fleet may be scrapped, and the percentage of ships that are idling may grow at least one percentage point from the current 5% to 6%. Source: Fox Business News
Economist Dan North to Address U.S. and Global Financial Forecast
This year’s IMUA Annual Meeting’s keynote address will feature a presentation by Dan North, Chief Economist for Euler Hermes North America. Addressing attendees of the 83rd Annual Meeting, he plans to discuss what lies ahead for both the US and global economies and how it is impacted by monetary and fiscal policies. The 83rd IMUA Annual Meeting will be held May 19-22, 2013 at the Intercontinental Hotel in the Atlanta, GA suburb of Buckhead. Mr. North has been with Euler Hermes North America (EHNA) since 1996, using macroeconomic and quantitative analyses to help manage EHNA’s risk portfolio of more than $150 billion in annual U.S. trade transactions.
SHI Profits Eroded by One-Off Costs
Samsung Heavy Industries (HII) Q4 3012 net profit fell 59% due to costs related to an oil-leakage accident in 2007. Net profit for the three months ended December 31 fell to KRW73 billion from KRW176.5 billion a year earlier, reports Fox Business News; however, fourth-quarter sales and operating profit rose on orders for higher-end ships. Full-year 2012 net profit fell 6.4% to KRW796.4 billion. Operating profit climbed 11% to KRW1.206 trillion and sales rose 8.2% to KRW14.49 trillion. Source: Fox Business News/Dow Jones Newswires
World's No.3 Shipbuilder Profits Plummet
Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) net profit fell 82% in 2012. The loss is primarily attributed to the decision DSME made in 2009 to book orders for ships at lower rates to stay afloat in the aftermath of the financial crisis, reports Fox Business News. In a further setback, the world's third-largest shipbuilder by sales also lowered its order target for 2013, faced by a supply glut in the shipping industry and a fragile global economy. For the year, Daewoo Shipbuilding has set an order target of $13 billion, down 9% from its actual achievement of $14.3 billion last year. Source: Fox Business News via Dow Jones Business Wire
Arctic Well Drills by Shell to Increase Due to Delays
Royal Dutch Shell expects to drill 8 wells in the second half of its two-year Arctic exploration program, 3 more than originally planned. Stubborn ice sheets and permit delays have reduced the amount of time available for Shell to complete the first five wells this year, reports 'Fox Business News'. Shell, which still plans to drill ten wells in two years, is busy working with the U.S. coastguard to complete a special oil spill containment vessel that is being retrofitted to operate in more challenging conditions. The Shell spokesman said ice in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas is thicker than it has it has been in more than a decade. The company has previously indicated that it expects to begin drilling sometime in early August. Source: Fox Business News
MarPro Editor Joe Keefe Appears on Fox Business News
Joseph Keefe, editor of Maritime Professional and MarineNews magazines, last night appeared on Fox Business News' "America's Nightly Scoreboard" with David Asman to discuss the scrapping of a pair of U.S. Navy tankers before they were complete. Joe Keefe Appears on Fox Business News
