Azerbaijan, Russia Introduces New Cruise
The Chairman of Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company (ACSC) Rauf Veliyev and Konstantin Anisimov, the General Director of Moscow River Shipping Company (MRSC) signed in Baku a memorandum of cooperation in cruise shipping in the Caspian region with the use of the new cruise passenger vessel "Peter the Great". The agreement was signed during the visit of the Russian delegation headed by Konstantin Anisimov to Baku. The agreement provides for joint activities on study and development of optimal routes for cruise passenger vessels, such as ports of the Black Sea - inland waterways of the Russian Federation - Astrakhan - ports of the Caspian Sea; Moscow-Baku; Astrakhan - Makhachkala - Baku; Baku-Anzali- Nowshahr -Turkmenbashi-Aktau-Astrakhan and others.
North Sea Tanker Market Leads Boom
Tanker markets around the world soared this week, led by the North Sea market where rates swelled by nearly a third as supply dried up for end-month loading dates. Brokers said Vitol paid W160 ($0.85 per barrel) for the 80,000 tonner Moscow River loading from Teeside on July 26, compared to W125 at the start of the week and W95 a month ago. "There's been pressure for the end of month positions, which we'd kind of anticipated," said a London broker. Most of the smaller tankers were heading to northern Europe, but the larger sizes started to see some transatlantic activity this week. A raft of transatlantic fixtures pushed million-barrel rates past the W110 mark ($1.13 per barrel) and VLCC rates to W55 for U.S.Gulf discharge.
