Moore Stephens Llp News

International accountant and shipping adviser Moore Stephens says the shipping industry must adopt a transparent, proactive approach to corporate governance or else risk exposure to business and reputational damage. Corporate governance in shipping has been in sharp focus recently, particularly following publication of the research by Wells Fargo Securities into Shipping’s Corporate Governance War. Robert Noye-Allen, a partner in the Moore Stephens Governance Risk & Assurance team, says, “Businesses in today’s shipping industry are expected to fully comprehend the implications of inadequate management of conflict of interest arrangements, and to recognise the importance of independent directorship.

A survey by leading accountant Moore Stephens has revealed that over three-quarters of owner-managed businesses (OMBs) in the UK operating in the shipping and transport sector are confident about their prospects for 2016. The survey revealed that, despite facing a number of major challenges and risks, shipping and transport (S&T) OMBs were particularly focused this year on training staff, expanding their UK customer base, investing in new technology and pursuing cost-reduction initiatives. The survey analysed responses from UK-based OMBs, and revealed that 78% of S&T OMBs were confident about the general outlook for 2016, with 71% expecting to hit their revenue targets for the year.

Playing an active role and making meaningful contributions to the workings and development of the Tripartite Maritime Manpower Taskforce initiatives for both seafaring and shore-based jobs will be one of the major priorities for the new Singapore Shipping Association (SSA) Council, its recently elected President has announced. Addressing a press briefing in Singapore yesterday, Esben Poulsson said the initiative, spearheaded by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA)…

International shipping adviser Moore Stephens said the UK budget for 2012 contains some encouraging signs for the shipping industry. The government has stated that it will consult later this year on whether to introduce a rule allowing companies with a non-sterling functional currency to compute their capital gains and losses in such functional currency, rather than in sterling, as is currently the case. “This is of particular relevance for UK companies, which own vessels outside the UK tonnage tax regime, either because the company did not elect into tonnage tax, or because the ship does not qualify for tonnage tax - for example, because it is chartered out on a long-term bareboat charter…

Moore Stephens, understands that Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has agreed to re-examine, in consultation with the shipping industry, its earlier intention to unilaterally reinterpret the UK Tonnage Tax rules to the potential detriment of many shipowners. Widely disputed changes based on unspecified ‘legal advice’ were set out in HMRC’s tonnage tax manual in September 2009. These focused in particular on a reinterpretation of the strategic and commercial management tests that are fundamental to qualification for the tonnage tax regime.

Leading accountant and shipping adviser, Moore Stephens says companies operating within UK tonnage tax could consider leaving the UK, as a result of HMRC’s decision to unilaterally reinterpret the regime rules. Sue Bill, a tax partner with Moore Stephens, says, “Given the substantial increase in the UK fleet since 2000, it is widely considered that UK tonnage tax has been a success. HMRC’s decision to reinterpret the legislation results from comments in the 2004 EU guidelines on state aid to maritime transport.

Leading accountant and shipping adviser Moore Stephens says that, despite mixed news for non-UK-domiciled individuals, the UK Budget 2011 appears to be good news for shipping. The bad news in the Budget, announced on 23 March, is that the existing annual remittance basis charge for non-doms resident in the UK for twelve years or more will increase from £30,000 to £50,000, albeit not until 6 April, 2012. The good news is that the government also proposes not to tax foreign income or capital remitted to the UK for the purposes of ‘commercial investment in UK businesses’…

Overall confidence levels in the shipping industry dropped for the third successive quarter in the three months ending February 2011, to reach their lowest level for fifteen months, according to the latest survey by leading accountant and shipping adviser Moore Stephens. Over-tonnaging and the uncertainty created by political unrest in the Middle East and North Africa were the dominant themes running throughout the responses to the survey, which also revealed an increase across all categories in the number of respondents who expected finance costs to rise over the coming year.

According to Moore Stephens LLP, a shipping and insurance adviser, vessel operating costs are expected to rise by 3.2 per cent in 2010 and by 3.5 per cent in 2011, with crew costs identified as the category most likely to produce the highest levels of increase, according to a new survey by international accountant and shipping consultant Moore Stephens. The survey is based on responses from key players in the international shipping industry, predominantly ship owners and managers in Europe and Asia. And those responses revealed an overall expectation that crew costs would rise by 2.7 per cent in 2010 and by 3.0 per cent in 2011. “It’s all about crew,” noted one respondent. “With fewer experienced crew available for worldwide fleet expansion, labour costs will rise”.

FMC Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: FTI) announced that it has signed a subsea service contract with Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) (NYSE:PBRA) . The agreement is effective through 2012 and is expected to result in an additional $80m in revenue to FMC Technologies. FMC's scope of supply includes storage, maintenance, commissioning and offshore services for subsea and topside control systems and drill pipe riser systems. 10. International accountant and shipping consultant Moore Stephens has strengthened its shipping industry risk management services capability following a merger with AHL Business Assurance Limited, a specialist provider of governance, risk and internal audit services.

Shipping accountant Moore Stephens said that, despite the current economic downturn, shipping is still a good business to be in, and that resourceful investors will find opportunities to expand, or to get back into shipping, over the next twelve months. Julian Wilkinson, head of the Moore Stephens shipping team, said, “Shipping enters 2009 with at least one certainty – the good times are over for now. The easy money has dried up, the old ships have been scrapped or are laid up and there are no prospects of markets going up any time soon. But, in a cyclical industry, sensible players make money whichever way the market moves. Writing in the firm’s Bottom Line newsletter…

The latest Shipping Confidence Survey by Moore Stephens has revealed a significant drop in overall confidence levels in the market, and an increased expectation that rates in the tanker, dry bulk and container ship sectors will fall in the next twelve months. On a scale of 1 to 10, the average confidence level reported by respondents was 5.6, compared to 6.8 in the previous survey in June 2008. Confidence levels fell across all sectors and regions and the greater divergence between respondents suggests greater uncertainty across market participants. Ship managers and owners were the most confident at 6.0 and 5.8 respectively, although these were markedly down on the corresponding figures in June.