Intelligence Unit News

Chinese automakers and shippers are ordering a record number of car-carrying vessels to support a boom in EV exports, data showed, putting China on course to amass the world's fourth-largest fleet by 2028.China currently has the world's eighth-largest fleet with 33 car-carrying ships, showed data from shipping consultancy Veson Nautical. Japan has the world's largest with 283 ships, followed by Norway's 102, South Korea's 72 and Isle of Man's 61.But Chinese companies have 47 ships on order, accounting for a quarter of all orders globally.

Ukraine destroyed a Russian landing warship off the coast of occupied Crimea in an operation with naval drones that breached the vessel's port side on Wednesday and caused it to sink, Kyiv's military spy agency and armed forces said.There was no immediate comment from Russia, which said earlier that it had destroyed six drones in the Black Sea. The Kremlin declined to comment."The Ukrainian Armed Forces, together with the Defense Ministry's intelligence unit, destroyed the Tsezar Kunikov large landing ship.

Cash-strapped Cuba has canceled its annual international trade and investment fair slated for November due to the pandemic, state-run media reported on Friday, even as fallout from the novel coronavirus hammers revenues and imports.Container traffic at the port of Mariel, responsible for 90% of containers entering the country, was down between 20% and 25% through May, compared with the same period last year, according to a shipping source with access to the data.Cuba does not reveal key economic information in a timely manner…

When President Xi Jinping made his first state visit this year to Myanmar and signed new infrastructure contracts, there was no indication of the obstacle about to trip up China's plan for railways, ports and highways around the world: the coronavirus.Travel restrictions to prevent the spread of the disease, which has now killed more than 1,800 people, have idled much of the world's second-largest economy and choked key elements of Xi's signature Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).Chinese workers cannot get to overseas projects…

The blue economy can be the engine of economic growth, the basis of socio-economic development and industrialization for many African countries, if well utilized.The maritime industry, for example, is estimated at over $1 trillion, and there are other related and emerging sectors of tourism, offshore renewable energy, aquaculture, seabed extractive industries, marine biotechnology and bio prospecting.Said Adejumobi, Southern Africa Director, UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) said that  the Economic Commission for Africa is fully committed to supporting the African Union, Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and member States to…

CaroTrans, a global non-vessel operating common carrier (NVOCC) and ocean freight consolidator, has entered a partnership with Thrutainers International, an established NVOCC in South Africa. This cooperation creates a U.S.- Sub-Saharan Africa import/export LCL service network in this important trade lane. In 2016, Sub-Saharan Africa is forecasted to have a 3.5 percent GDP increase over 2015, the U.S. a 2.3 percent increase in GDP (Economist Intelligence Unit). Established in 1978, Thrutainers offers a national footprint within South Africa including container freight stations (CFS), multimodal inland services, and warehousing and distribution.

A five point plan to help tackle Africa’s infrastructure gap is among the findings of a new DP World report to be unveiled at the Africa Global Business Forum this week. Public private partnerships, domestic bond financing, monitoring the life cycle of infrastructure by maintaining and upgrading existing stock, enhanced trade integration and improved trade facilitation are key points raised in the study “Africa At The Crossroads: Bridging The Infrastructure Gap” produced in association with the Economist Intelligence Unit. Over the past decade, investment in African infrastructure has risen sharply and some notable projects have been completed.

Confidence for improved margins and higher capital investment has returned to the oil and gas industry this year, according to a group of industry leaders. However in the long-term, the energy sector faces unprecedented challenges that could have a lasting impact for years to come. The comments were among those made at an exclusive roundtable event held recently in Houston by GL Noble Denton, an independent technical advisor to the industry. This event followed the publication of “Big Spenders: The outlook for the oil and gas industry in 2012”…

Australia must work harder to build local oil and gas talent, according to Industry Snapshot Poll. Delegates at the 2012 Australasian Oil and Gas Conference have warned that Australia needs to do more to grow its own oil and gas talent, according to a poll conducted by GL Noble Denton. Oil and gas professionals have called for Australia to do more to build local industry talent, as the country struggles with an increasing shortage of skilled professionals. According to a poll conducted yesterday at the Australasian Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition (AOG) in Perth, 68% of industry professionals think that Australia invest more in developing a local skills base, while 32% thought that the country is doing enough to increase the pool of local professionals.

While forecasts of financial gloom dominate mainstream news casts, there is an emerging feeling of optimism in fo the near term prospects for the oil and gas business. Oil and gas industry leaders have forecast improved performance and higher levels of capital expenditure this year, despite concerns over global economic instability, according to a new report on the future of the sector. Increased investment across the industry will focus on exploration activity, with North America emerging as the area with the greatest opportunities in 2012.

December marked the 10th anniversary of the U.S. Coast Guard’s formal entry into the national intelligence community, although many had long perceived the Coast Guard as a de facto member. The Coast Guard began its long involvement with the work of intelligence in 1790. Tariffs imposed on goods imported to the United States, in order to raise revenue, caused lawless merchants to unload their cargoes at isolated locations to avoid paying the tariffs at customs houses in ports.

International oil companies remain vital to the growth of Asian oil and gas industry. Asia still requires the injection of profit-driven innovation from international oil companies, sector leaders claim. Asia needs international oil companies to continue to play a large and essential role in the oil and gas industry’s research and development activity, despite the growth of national oil companies, a group of the region’s oil and gas industry leaders has stated. The comments were…

Oil and gas professionals are upbeat about the future of North Sea operations, Offshore Europe poll reveals. 57% of delegates at Offshore Europe expect investment in the North Sea oil and gas industry to increase in 2012, according to Economist Intelligence Unit research commissioned by GL Noble Denton. Offshore Europe, Aberdeen – 7 September, 2011: Oil and gas industry professionals are optimistic that there will be increased investment activity in the North Sea next year, according to a poll conducted yesterday at the Offshore Europe conference in Aberdeen.

GL Noble Denton commissions new Economist Intelligence Unit report on the outlook for the oil and gas industry in 2012. GL Noble Denton, the independent technical advisor to the oil and gas industry, is calling upon sector professionals to contribute to what will be one of the most comprehensive sector outlook reports to date, a sequel to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s commended study: Deep water ahead? The outlook for the oil and gas industry in 2011, sponsored by GL Noble Denton earlier this year.

At a time when the actions of open registries and offshore jurisdictions are under unprecedented scrutiny, the Republic of the Marshall Islands is demonstrating its resolve and commitment to transparency and accountability by accepting an invitation to join the Egmont Group. The Egmont Group is an international network of financial intelligence units set up to promote global communication to prevent and investigate money laundering and the financial background of known and suspected terrorists, including open ship registries, some of which, in the past, have been allegedly involved in dubious financial transactions. The Marshall Islands was invited to join the Egmont Group despite only having enacted anti-money laundering legislation with the Banking (Amendment) Act…

Regulatory developments mean that failure to make proper use of business intelligence systems and actuarial consultancy to assess risk could lead not only to significant financial losses but also to disciplinary penalties for insurance underwriters and brokers, according to leading accountant and consultant Moore Stephens. designed to support the development of effective reserving and forecasting procedures. They are now an essential part of insurance industry practice. analytical and risk management services. Steve Downing says, "The insurance industry must embrace a centralized approach to risk management, one which has the ability to analyse data in a flexible way, to search for trends and patterns, to analyse productivity and to help business planning and forecasting.

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP), along with the Government of Panama, participated in The Business Roundtable, organized by Economist Conferences, a division of the Economist Intelligence Unit in Panama. During the forum, Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs Samuel Lewis Navarro, ACP Board of Directors Chairman and Minister of Canal Affairs Dani Kuzniecky, ACP Administrator/CEO Alberto Alemán Zubieta and Coyne et Bellier’s Executive Vice President for Strategy and Development, Jean Binquet discussed the importance of the Canal’s expansion as one of the main projects for the country’s economic development. Panama is leveraging its two primary assets, its natural geographic position and the Panama Canal, to create an aggressive development strategy.

IMO Secretary-General William O’Neil has highlighted the shipping industry’s continued success in achieving improvements to its safety and environmental record as he addressed delegates at the opening of the 77th session of the Organization’s Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) in London today. Mr O’Neil spoke of shipping as “an industry to be proud of”, and added that no opportunity to emphasize this should be missed. Mr O’Neil drew delegates’ attention to statistics for the period, 1991 to 2001, recently issued by the Lloyd’s Underwriters Marine Intelligence Unit, which show a very clear and sustained decline in the number of ships over 500 gross tons lost each year, from over 180 units in 1991 to less than 80 units just ten years later.