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Manufacturing Activity News

06 Jan 2023

Diesel Consumption to Fall with US Manufacturing Downturn

Copyright JEGAS RA/AdobeStock

U.S. manufacturers reported business activity declined for the second month running in December and the sector appears to be on the leading edge of a recession. The slowdown in manufacturing and freight has already dampened consumption of diesel and other distillate fuel oils, and consumption is likely to fall if the manufacturing downturn deepens.The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing activity index fell to 48.4 in December (19th percentile for all months since 1980)…

16 Nov 2022

US Container Freight is Shrinking

© BKP / Adobe Stock

Container freight volumes at the largest U.S. ports were down 3.8% in September compared with the same month a year earlier, confirming the slackening of merchandise trade and downturn in the business cycle.The ports of New York-New Jersey, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Savannah, Houston, Norfolk, Charleston, Seattle and Oakland account for the overwhelming majority of container ocean freight into and out of the United States.The total volume of loaded containers handled by these nine ports amounted to 2.67 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in September 2022…

04 Aug 2021

U.S. Manufacturing of Durable Goods hits $270.5B Record High - BIMCO

© freshidea/AdobeStock

U.S. manufacturing of durable goods, which has been lagging the wider recovery of the U.S. economy, hit an all-time high in June when $270.5B worth of goods was produced. This brings total manufacturing of durable goods so far this year to $1,482 billion, a 15.5% increase compared with the first half of 2020.Since the production of durable goods in the first half of 2021 is up 1.6% from the first half of 2019, this section of the industry has now officially returned to its pre-pandemic levels.Manufacturing activity is expected to have continued its growth in July…

20 Jul 2021

Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System Sees Surge in Construction Material Shipments

Credit: james_pintar/AdobeStock

U.S. Great Lakes ports and the St. Lawrence Seaway have experienced a rise in cargo shipments to feed domestic construction and manufacturing activity and global export demand, according to the latest June figures.The Great Lakes-Seaway System serves a region that includes eight U.S. states and two Canadian provinces, and is seen as a marine highway that extends 2,300 miles from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, supporting more than 237,868 jobs and $35 billion in economic activity.If the region were a country…

14 Apr 2020

China's Commodity Imports Remain Robust

© Igor Groshev / Adobe Stock

The new coronavirus caused barely a blip in China's imports of major commodities, but this likely underscores the ways China differs from the rest of the world, rather than providing a template for the globe's recovery from the pandemic.China's crude oil imports in March, the month when much of the world's second-largest economy was in lockdown, were equivalent to 9.68 million barrels per day (bpd), according to official customs data released on Tuesday.That's 4.5% higher than…

19 Mar 2020

Shipping Not Immune to a Pandemic -BIMCO

© donvictori0 / Adobe Stock

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus a pandemic. There is little doubt that this will have significant implications for the shipping industry. But to what extent? BIMCO expects that the strict containment measures imposed by governments around the world will result in substantially lower global economic growth and consequentially, lower demand for shipping. Container and dry bulk shipping are at the front line when it comes to feeling the fallout…

14 Feb 2020

Coronavirus Leaves China-bound Tankers Stranded

© Riekelt / Adobe Stock

The coronavirus's effect on energy markets is worsening, as the sharp fall in demand in China, the world's largest importer of crude, is stranding oil cargoes off the country's coast and prompting shippers to seek out other Asian destinations.More than 1,360 people have died from the coronavirus in China, which has disrupted the world's second largest economy and shaken energy markets, with international benchmark Brent crude oil down 15% since the beginning of the year.Major international energy forecasters expect demand to fall in this quarter…

06 Feb 2020

US Trade Deficit Narrows for First Time in Six Years

©  Mariakray / Adobe Stock

The U.S. trade deficit fell for the first time in six years in 2019 as the White House’s trade war with China curbed the import bill, keeping the economy on a moderate growth path despite a slowdown in consumer spending and weak business investment.The report from the Commerce Department on Wednesday also showed the Trump administration’s “America First” agenda decreased the flow of goods last year, with exports posting their first decline since 2016. President Donald Trump, who has dubbed himself “the tariff man…

02 May 2019

Kirby Posts 2019 Q1 Results

David Grzebinski, Kirby’s President and Chief Executive Officer

Kirby Corporation announced net earnings attributable to Kirby for the first quarter ended March 31, 2019 of $44.3 million, or $0.74 per share, compared with earnings of $32.5 million, or $0.54 per share, for the 2018 first quarter. Excluding certain one-time charges, 2018 first quarter net earnings attributable to Kirby were $37.9 million, or $0.63 per share. Consolidated revenues for the 2019 first quarter were $744.6 million compared with $741.7 million reported for the 2018 first quarter.David Grzebinski…

23 Mar 2016

Seaway Opens 58th Navigation Season Ice Free

Photo courtesy of SLSMC

The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC) marked the opening of the Seaway’s 58th navigation season, with the transit of Canada Steamship Lines’ Thunder Bay through Lock 3 on the Welland Canal. The ship, carrying a load of road salt, will be replenishing stocks depleted by ice storms which repeatedly struck Eastern Canada over the winter. “We certainly welcome the warmer weather. A return to an opening in the third week of March provides our clients with the opportunity to move cargo in a timely manner…

22 Mar 2016

Seaway Opens 58th Navigation Season

The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC) marked the opening of the Seaway’s 58th navigation season today, with the transit of Canada Steamship Lines’ Thunder Bay through Lock 3 on the Welland Canal. The ship, carrying a load of road salt, will be replenishing stocks depleted by ice storms which repeatedly struck Eastern Canada over the winter. “We certainly welcome the warmer weather. A return to an opening in the third week of March provides our clients with the opportunity to move cargo in a timely manner, and make the most of the navigation season” said Terence Bowles, President and CEO of the SLSMC. Allister Paterson, President of Canada Steamship Lines, served as the keynote speaker at the opening.

10 Mar 2016

Sluggish Freight Movements Have Downside Risks

Global distillate markets remain heavily oversupplied but the glut will not clear unless the world economy avoids recession and there is a renewed acceleration in freight demand. Recent data have been mixed. The consumer side of the U.S. economy appears to be strong but the industrial side is still struggling, and in the rest of the world growth appears to be slowing. U.S. freight movements picked up at the start of the year but demand for moving manufactured products and raw materials across the country remains sluggish. Combined freight movements by road, rail, barge, pipeline and aircraft increased in December and January, the first time freight has increased for two consecutive months since November 2014 (http://tmsnrt.rs/1pa8DbM).

01 Mar 2016

S.Korea Feb Exports Tumble on China Slowdown, Lower Oil

Photo: Busan Port Authority

South Korean exports in February tumbled in their 14th consecutive month of declines, with the longest slump in the country's modern history underscoring how a slowdown in China is putting trade-reliant economies on the skids. The bleak overseas sales from the world's sixth-largest exporter, home to globe-trotting manufacturers of mobile phones to cars to ships, suggest policy makers will have their work cut as they seek to spark growth in the face of faltering demand. Lower oil prices also hurt South Korean exports in February…

18 Aug 2015

World Shipping Hit by Slump in Global Trade

Dashing hopes of a quick recovery from the global trade recession earlier this year, world shipping has fallen into a deep slump over the late summer, says a report in the Telegraph. Commodity turmoil could blow the shipping industry off course. The global shipping industry has been contending with headwinds from tumbling commodity prices for months. The Baltic Dry Index (BDI) - a gauge of shipping costs - dropped to its lowest point since 1985 during the period, with the market weighed down by "an oversupplied fleet and a slowdown in seaborne demand". Shipping freight rates for transporting containers from ports in Asia to Northern Europe fell by 23.2 percent to $640 per 20-foot container (TEU) in the week, according to  the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index.

10 Jun 2015

Busy Season for Seaway

Grain shipments through the St. Lawrence Seaway are up 7 per cent this season, continuing the pace set last year when ships carried the largest volume of grain through the navigation system in 14 years. According to The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, grain shipments (including Canadian and U.S. grain) totaled 1.9 million metric tons from April 2 to May 31. The Port of Thunder Bay, the largest grain port on the Great Lakes, reported that its grain shipments were off to the strongest start this season since 1997, as the major handlers continue to export the harvest from 2014. So far this season, Algoma Central Corporation’s ships have carried 50 per cent more grain, mainly from Thunder Bay to Quebec for transshipment overseas.

16 Apr 2015

Georgia Port Increases Container Traffic

The Georgia Ports Authority increased containerized cargo in March by 27.8 percent compared to the same month a year ago, for an additional 72,499 20-foot equivalent container units (TEUs). “We are moving record volumes while maintaining excellent service levels for our customers,” said Curtis Foltz, executive director of the Georgia Ports Authority, which oversees the Port of Savannah. “Our March numbers have once again demonstrated the scale, flexibility and efficiency of the Garden City Terminal. Freight handling remained fluid, even with demand well above forecasts,” he said. For the first time, the Port of Savannah moved 333,058 TEUs in a single month, surpassing its previous monthly record set in October 2014 by more than 21,000 TEUs.

24 Sep 2014

Brent Crude Slips Below US$97

Brent crude fell for a third day on Wednesday, slipping further below $97 a barrel as inflated supplies and weak economic data from Europe outweighed rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. * U.S. The European economic data and a rise in oil exports from Iraq and Nigeria overshadowed a boost from China with Tuesday's release of a better-than-expected flash Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for September. U.S. air strikes on militants in Syria also failed to lift prices. Brent for November delivery slipped 1 cent to $96.84 a barrel by 0704 GMT, although U.S. crude rose 29 cents to $91.85 a barrel. "Oil prices did not really gather the support coming from China's manufacturing data from yesterday as softer European manufacturing data followed…

17 Dec 2013

St. Lawrence Seaway U.S. Ports Record Mixed 2013 Results

While the 2013 shipping season saw overall fluctuating cargo figures, U.S. ports on the Great Lakes have continued to outperform their initial projections. The St. Lawrence Seaway reported that year-to-date total cargo shipments for the period March 22 to November 30 were 33 million metric tons, down 6% over the same period in 2012. "The shipping industry in the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System relied heavily on our terminal operators and longshoremen this month as they loaded and unloaded ships full of steel…

21 Feb 2013

Rolls-Royce Waterjets Delivered to New U.S. LCS

Littoral Combat Ship: Image credit Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce delivers advanced new Axial Mk1 waterjets for the latest US Navy Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). Rolls-Royce Axial Mk1 waterjets are very power dense, delivering more cavitation-free performance for their size and power than any other waterjet. At 22MW of power, a single waterjet of this scale can move almost half a million gallons of seawater per minute. Four of these waterjets will propel the LCS at speeds in excess of 40 knots. This delivery marks the successful completion of the Office of Naval Research's (ONR) Future Naval Capabilities (FNC) program for “Compact…

26 Feb 2013

Rolls-Royce Delivers Waterjets for US Navy LCS

Photo: Lockheed Martin

Rolls-Royce delivered the Axial Mk1 waterjet for the latest Freedom-variant of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) class, currently under construction for the U.S. Navy. This delivery marks the successful completion of the Office of Naval Research’s (ONR) Future Naval Capabilities (FNC) program for “Compact, High Power Density Waterjets”. This new  waterjet will now be standard equipment for all future Freedom variants of the Littoral Combat Ships supplied to the U.S. Navy by Lockheed Martin.

14 May 2013

Prysmian Opens Plant in Romania

Prysmian announced the opening of a new plant for the production of optical fiber cable in Slatina, Romania. The Slatina factory celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, having started its manufacturing activity in 1973 with production of energy cables, while in 2009 it introduced the first module for the production of optical fiber cables. The factory boasts a number of quality certifications such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and IMQ, and the new plant will triple its production, from 500,000 kilometers up to 1.5 million kilometres of cables per year, with the potential of reaching 3 million. The Slatina plant stretches across almost 100.000 square meters, with a covered area of around 42,000 square meters.

24 May 2013

EFC Group Launches Next Phase of NE Scotland Expansion

EFC Group, a designer and manufacturer of instrumentation, monitoring, handling and control systems for the global oil and gas industry, announced the launch of a new manufacturing plant in Moray. The base in Enterprise Park, Forres marks the Group’s second phase of expansion in the area and a £100,000 investment. This follows the opening of a new satellite office in the same business park in September 2012. The new 4,000-square-foot plant has been opened six months ahead of schedule, demonstrating how EFC Group is driving forward its aggressive growth strategy.

16 Jul 2004

Containership’s Surge: When Will It End

As a range of container ship charter indices reach their highest ever levels, the inevitable question must be, how long can this bull run last? Container ship charter rates have reached highest ever levels across a broad range of sizes with Howe Robinson’s container charter index edging up further this week, to another record of 1571.5. According to the broker’s second quarter container charter market review, “doubters have questioned the sustainability of the charter market since it started to move upwards in January 2002”. In that time, its index has spiraled by almost 250% - from 450.