Seacurus Daily: Top Ten Maritime News Stories 09/11/2016
1. Trump Triumph Batters Markets
As Donald Trump appears set to take the White House, markets around the world have become volatile. The pound is down against the euro but up against the dollar, but thatâs not where the main action is. One pundit said that it could be the worst day on the markets since 9/11. Craig Erlam, senior market analyst from Oanda, gave this analysis of whatâs happening at the moment: Itâs been a bloodbath in the markets over the last few hours with the Mexican peso suffering particularly badly as Donald Trump edges ever closer to the White House.
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2. Slow and Low Ships Warned
The Kuala Lumpur-based Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia Information Sharing Centre (ReCAAP ISC) is warning shipowners to be very careful when transiting in between Sabah and the southern Philippines. With eight cases of piracy reported this year, including most recently one on a Korean heavylift ship, ReCAAP ISC said in a report out today it is concerned about the situation in the region and it has advised slow moving ships with low freeboard to reroute away from the area, if possible. Masters and crew are strongly urged to exercise extra vigilance.
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3. Piracy Has Been Understated
Ships sailing between Somalia and Yemen may be underestimating the risk of piracy and terrorism following two attempted attacks last month, maritime officials say. More than 40 percent of the world’s seaborne oil supplies pass through the Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea, a major shipping lane also used to move exports and commodities such as food between Asia and Europe. The European Union’s counter-piracy naval force (EU Navfor) confirmed on Nov. 4 that six armed men attacked chemical tanker "CPO Korea" 330 nautical miles (610 km) east of Somalia the first reported attack for two and a half years.
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4. Kidnapping is the New Danger
Piracy has shifted away from hijacking and towards kidnapping, according to new analysis released today by IHS Markit. Devlin McStay, Data Analyst at IHS Maritime and Trade, said: âPiracy has changed in the past three years, the number of piracy attacks is decreasing overall, but kidnapping is becoming more common. We are seeing the number of kidnappings rise in the piracy hotspots of Southeast Asia and West Africa.â IHS Maritime & Trade tracked nine kidnappings in 2014. That number rose to 19 in 2015 and so far stands at 44 from January to 30 September 2016.
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5. Shipmanagers Set for Merger
Columbia Shipmanagement and Marlow Navigation have confirmed that they are in discussions about a merger. The shipmanagement sector has seen much consolidation in the past couple of years with Anglo-Eastern merging with Univan and V.Group taking over Bibby Ship Management. In a statement Columbia and Marlow said they are âwell into investigationsâ into a future equal partnership of the two parties. The pair already have a joint venture aimed at developing enhanced IT solutions for digitalised ship management and crew training at Marlowâs training centre in the Philippines.
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6. Box Alliance Reveals Plans
The members of "THE Alliance" announced details of the plan for their product starting from April 2017. THE Alliance plans to deploy a fleet of more than 240 modern ships in the Asia /Europe, North Atlantic and Trans-Pacific trade lanes including the Middle East and the Arabian Gulf/Red Sea. The start of THE Alliance as the most integrated liner shipping consortia is scheduled for April 2017 (subject to completion of all relevant regulatory requirements). âThe product of THE Alliance is a milestone which will significantly improve the service offering for all shippers on the East West trade lanesâ, said the member carriers.
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7. Fire Ship Salvors Appointed
Salvors have been appointed by the owners of a ship that caught fire in the Cape Town harbour almost a week ago, a Transnet National Ports Authority official reported. Their first task would be to extinguish the fire, drain water from the vessel and make it safe, said Port of Cape Town spokesperson Coen Birkenstock.
Daily meetings would be held with the salvors of the Verano fishing trawler to map the way forward. The fire broke out in the vessel last week while she was berthed at quay 703, sparking fears of a major pollution spill as clouds of smoke billowed across the harbour. The vessel had been carrying polystyrene and oil.
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8. Banks Yank Shipping
Banks yanking their shipping portfolios continue apace. Bank of Ireland has become the latest to announce it will exit the shipping sector, joining a host of other mainly European lenders backing away from the depressed industry. At its peak, pre-Lehman collapse, Bank of Ireland had a ship finance portfolio of close to $2bn, according to Marine Money, a figure that has since quartered. Meanwhile, South African bank Investec has told Reuters it has no intention of taking on any more shipping loans.
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9. Anti-Pollution Collision
The general cargo ship "Sestroretsk" collided with the bunker anti-pollution tanker "Kolonok-139" on the VolgaâCaspian Sea Canal. The both vessels were on crossing routes near the 17-kilometers mark, but collided due to violation of Col Reg and lack of communication. The both ships suffered slight damages, as the both officers succeeded to maneuver in last minute. The ships reported the accident to the local authorities and were ordered to anchor for investigations and special inspection. After several hours, the general cargo ship Sestroretsk was released to resume the voyage, while the bunker anti-pollution tanker anchored.
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10. Updated Weapons Guidance
BIMCO has recently updated the guidance with respect to clause 10 of GUARDCON with a view to underlining the importance of validated firearms and user certificates. In the last couple of years, more than 200 private maritime security companies (PMSCs) have entered the market. Not all of those companies seem to meet the required standard for legitimately operating in the shipping industry. Specifically, there are PMSCs that are using weapons ârentedâ or âborrowedâ from other security companies; a practice established solely in order to reduce the operating costs. This is an illegal practice.
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Daily news feed from Seacurus Ltd â providers of MLC crew insurance solutions www.seacurus.com
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