Cargo News

Iron ore prices have been a model of stability in recent months despite the increasing clouds over the outlook for the key steel raw material.The benchmark Singapore Exchange contract ended at $95.25 a metric ton on Monday, down from $95.89 at the previous close but up from the recent nine-month low of $93.35 on July 1.However, the range in the price between that low and the high so far in 2025 of $107.81 a ton on February 12 is a narrow $14.In 2024 the range between the high and the low was around $52 a ton…

Market average spot rates – July 8, 2025:Far East to US West Coast: USD 2673 per FEU (40ft container)Far East to US East Coast: USD 5151 per FEUFar East to North Europe: USD 3393 per FEUFar East to Mediterranean: USD 4197 per FEUNorth Europe to US East Coast: USD 1992 per FEUMarket average on the Transpacific trade from Far East to US West Coast accelerated its decline in the early days of July, down 18% from end-June and falling below the level seen in second half of May. With carriers now deploying more capacity above the level required to meet shippers’ demand…

“During the first half of 2025, global coal shipments fell 6% y/y amid weak import demand in large markets. Cargo loadings headed to China and advanced economies slowed considerably, partly due to stronger electricity generation from renewables and to weaker steel production,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analysis Manager at BIMCO.In recent years, China has joined several of the world’s advanced economies in rapidly phasing out fossil fuels from its electricity generation, thus reducing import dependence.

There’s a master on the run right now.It was 4am, about 10 years ago. Two crewmembers died, 15 others were hospitalized. The master didn’t receive prior notification of the cargo fumigation that occurred, yet it is the master who is being held accountable.Captain Kuba Szymanski, Secretary General of InterManager, recounts the story as he explains why he is pleased about some of the outcomes of MSC 100 but feels more work still needs to be done.“Very often people onboard a ship do not have enough information.

“During the first half of 2025, US seaborne grain shipments increased 9% y/y, driven by stronger maize exports. While an increase in import tariffs led to a 57% y/y drop in volumes to China, the US has been able to find alternative markets for most of its cargoes,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analysis Manager at BIMCO.In March 2025, China introduced higher tariffs on US grain shipments, significantly reducing the competitiveness of US cargoes. As a result, the share of US grain cargoes destined for China plunged from 26% in the first half of 2024 to just 10% in 2025.

The Lake Carriers’ Association reports that shipments of limestone on the Great Lakes totaled 3.5 million tons in June, an increase of 6.5% from 2024.However, this June’s loadings were below the month’s five-year average by 1.9%.Loadings out of U.S. quarries totaled 2.9 million tons, an increase of 12.2%t compared to last year. Shipments from Canadian quarries totaled 639,301 tons, a decrease of 13.4%.Year-to-date, the Lakes limestone trade stands at 9.1 million tons, a decrease of 6.5% compared to a year ago.

Global project heavy lift specialist AAL Shipping (AAL) is preparing to take delivery of its sixth 32,000-deadweight (DWT), 700 metric ton (MT) heavy lift Super B-Class vessel, the AAL Dammam. Unveiled at a naming ceremony at the CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipyard in Guangzhou, China, she is part of an eight-vessel newbuild fleet totaling 256,000 DWT and will immediately enter service with her maiden voyage, transporting offshore renewable energy cargo from China to the UK.The methanol…

The IEA’s medium-term outlook sees global oil supply increase set to far outpace demand growth in coming years.With intensifying geopolitical strains and heightened uncertainty about global economic prospects, oil markets are undergoing structural changes as the key drivers of supply and demand growth of the past 15 years start to fade, according to the latest edition of the IEA’s medium-term outlook.According to the report, China – which has driven the growth in global oil demand for well over a decade – is set to see its consumption peak in 2027…

MacGregor has secured an order from Hapag-Lloyd for its fully automatic twistlocks (ACV-1) “Hippo," designed to improve cargo handling efficiency. Twistlocks are used to secure containers on ships, ensuring stability and safety during transport.This order will support Hapag-Lloyd’s A19-series ships, which include six 19,900 TEU vessels: Al Nefud, Al Dahna Express, Barzan, Al Muraykh, Al Zubara, and Tihama.The order was booked in the first quarter 2025. The first set of Hippos…

The World Shipping Council (WSC) has released its annual Containers Lost at Sea report, showing that 576 containers were lost at sea in 2024.While this represents an increase from the record-low 221 containers lost in 2023, it remains well below the 10-year average of 1,274 containers lost annually, underscoring continued industry progress on safety and prevention.Container losses in 2024 were influenced by ongoing disruption in the Red Sea region, which led to a significant shift in global trade routes. Vessel transits around the Cape of Good Hope increased by 191% compared to 2023.

The Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation successfully completed the world’s first maritime pilot demonstrating the full value chain of onboard captured carbon dioxide (CO2) in China.The pilot encompassed two phases. In the first phase, Shanghai Qiyao Environmental Technology (SMDERI-QET) conducted a ship-to-ship (STS) transfer of 25.44 metric tons (MT) of captured CO2 from the container vessel MV Ever Top to the receiving vessel Dejin 26. The CO2 was subsequently offloaded from Dejin 26 to a tank truck at a jetty in Zhoushan…

Rates for shipping cargo containers from China to the U.S. have dropped by more than half since earlier this month, as imports rebounded less than expected after the slump that followed President Donald Trump slapping 145% tariffs on China.Trump quickly reversed course by lowering the rate to 30%. That cost increase on goods from the nation's No. 1 ocean trading partner remains significant, especially at a time when U.S. economic data is signaling weakness.Rates on the closely watched Shanghai-to-U.S.

Global shipping groups are looking to Brazil's courts to overturn competition rules that bar them from participating in the first round of bidding on a major new container terminal at Latin America's largest port, due to take place later this year.Danish shipping group Maersk filed a lawsuit on Monday in Sao Paulo against Brazil's marine transport authority (Antaq), and its general director, according to a document seen by Reuters. The lawsuit called for "procedural corrections to ensure a fair process" to assign the Tecon 10 terminal at the Port of Santos.The bidding rules…

BIMCO forecasts a stable demand outlook for the container shipping sector, aligned with previous reports, despite recent uncertainties in US trade policies. "We expect the supply/demand balance to weaken only slightly in 2025 and 2026, as our ship demand growth forecast now excludes a return to normal Red Sea and Suez Canal routings,” says Niels Rasmussen, Chief Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.The macroeconomic environment remains uncertain, with significant trade policy changes and geopolitical tensions affecting market conditions.

Emirates Shipping Line (ESL) enters the US market with the launch of the Sun Chief Express (SCX).The Sun Chief Express (SCX) will directly connect Seattle, WA with Ho Chi Minh, and Shekou, while also providing wider coverage of Southeast Asia via these ports. ESL will leverage its intermodal solutions within the US market, to provide inland connectivity via Seattle to locations across the US including, but not limited to Portland, OR, St. Paul, MN, Chicago, IL, Kansas City, MO, Columbus, OH and Memphis, TN.This news follows ESL's recent expansion to Mexico.

The Shell-led LNG Canada facility has produced its first LNG for export in Kitimat, British Columbia, a spokesperson for the project confirmed on Sunday.The milestone comes in advance of the facility loading its first LNG export cargo, which LNG Canada said it remains on track to do by the middle of this year.The facility is the first large-scale Canadian LNG project to begin production and also the first major LNG facility in North America with direct access to the Pacific coast, significantly reducing sail time to Asian markets when compared to U.S.

Iran is maintaining crude oil supply by loading tankers one at a time and moving floating oil storage much closer to China, two vessel tracking firms told Reuters, as the country seeks to keep a key source of revenue while under attack from Israel.The conflict between Iran and Israel which broke out last week poses a fresh hurdle for Iran, which uses a shadow fleet of tankers to conceal their origin and skirt U.S. sanctions reinstated in 2018 over its nuclear program.Crude exports from Iran, OPEC's third-largest producer, mainly head to China.

X-Press Feeders Group, the world’s largest independent common carrier, has signed two agreements with COSCO SHIPPING Lines, one of the world’s largest mainline operators, to expand network coverage, strengthen mainline-feeder coordination and improve service reliability.The agreements were signed by Francis Goh, Chief Operating Officer of X-Press Feeders Group and Irene Cheng Jin, Deputy Managing Director of COSCO SHIPPING Lines on June 18, 2025. Under the partnership agreement…

While global energy markets are not yet pricing in worst-case scenarios for the Israel-Iran war, oil tanker rates are providing a good real-time gauge of the escalating risks.Geopolitical risk has spiked following Israel's surprise bombardment of the Islamic Republic last Friday and Iran's retaliatory ballistic missile strikes, leading to a rally in global energy prices, with Brent crude rising 8% to roughly $75 a barrel.But markets and investors now appear to be in a holding pattern as the conflict unfolds…

Japan's second-largest shipping company, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), is operating as usual in the Gulf while closely monitoring the situation in the region, CEO Takeshi Hashimoto said on Tuesday."We are operating so many containers, car carriers and chemical tankers so that it is very, very difficult for us to reduce or stop with the service," Hashimoto told Reuters on the sidelines of the Energy Asia conference.Shippers re-routed via the Cape of Good Hope after Yemeni Houthis attacked ships in the Red Sea…

Marine fuel sales at the United Arab Emirates' Fujairah port hit a three-month low in May, data showed, while market sources said they are monitoring the situation in June as conflict flares between Israel and Iran, heightening regional tensions. Bunker sales, excluding lubricants, totalled 614,296 cubic metres (about 608,000 metric tons) at the Middle Eastern bunker hub in May, based on Fujairah Oil Industry Zone (FOIZ) data published by S&P Global Commodity Insights. The volumes were down 8.2% from April and by 0.2% from May last year.

Ocean Network Express (ONE) named the 13,900-TEU ONE Singapore, the sixth vessel in a series of 20 ammonia/methanol ready container vessels. The naming ceremony took place at the Hiroshima Shipyard of Imabari Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. in Japan, marking another milestone in ONE's fleet expansion program."Today's naming of ONE Singapore signifies further progress in our fleet expansion strategy," said Jeremy Nixon, CEO, ONE. "This vessel, carrying the name of our global headquarters city, symbolizes our strong connection to Singapore's vibrant maritime ecosystem.

Russia's seaborne grain exports fell to 2.1 million metric tons in May, a fall of 62.9% compared to the same month of 2024, according to shipping data from industry sources released on Monday.Russia, the world's leading wheat exporter, shipped grain to global markets at a record pace during the first part of the 2024/25 marketing season, which began on July 1 last year. However, the introduction of export quotas in February resulted in a sharp decline in exports.Total seaborne exports have reached 44.6 million tons so far this season…