The Lloyd’s List Podcast is in Shanghai this week where President Xi Jinping has been leading the discussions around trade policy and Chinese shipping giant Cosco has been talking up the value of a multi-lateral, value-added approach to supply chains. Joining Lloyd’s List Editor Richard Meade to discuss everything from trade policy and Trump bashing to Chinese leasing and why cargo interests are leapfrogging shipowners in news deals are China Editor Cichen Shen and special guest Bill Guo, executive director of leasing giant ICBC. 

Environmental protection is ultimately going to trump trade, according to our podcast guest this week — the IMO’s head of air pollution and energy efficiency, Edmund Hughes. Speaking to Lloyd’s List Editor Richard Meade and reporter Anastassios Adamopoulos in this week’s edition, he talks us through his confidence about 2020 implementation, the lessons learned in lowering sulphur that might help the decarbonisation debate, and the role of the IMO amid rapidly changing political dynamics 

The Podcast is in Naples this week as our law and insurance expert David Osler talks over the legal challenges of autonomy, Brexit and 2020 sulphur rules with some of the shipping industry’s finest legal minds. Featuring this week are: Mans Jacobsson, the now-retired former director of the International Oil Pollution Compensation funds; Tiejha Smyth, a solicitor who now works as deputy director of freight, demurrage and defence at North Group; James Leabeater QC and Hamish McRae, one of Britain’s best-known economics journalists

The Podcast comes from Singapore this week, where Lloyd’s List hosted the Asia Trade Outlook Forum, casting a critical eye over the market trends shaping shipping business decisions in the next 12 months. Joining Lloyd’s List Editor Richard Meade to discuss the key takeaways from the forum are the Asia editorial team: Cichen Shen, Vincent Wee, Hwee Hwee Tan and Inderpreet Walia.

The wrong kind of bunkers can do serious damage to hull and machinery, thereby leading to insurance claims

Emission control regulations have forced container lines to consider LNG as an alternative to scrubbers and low-sulphur fuel, with several carriers mulling conversions and newbuildings

Shipping is going to require clean, cheap energy to completely transition to zero-emission fuel options — and much depends on how quickly the cost of renewables can outpace carbon in the global economy

Whereas before size, durability and trade suitability would pre-empt the sign-off for newbuildings, adding fuel choice to the mix has brought a new layer of complexity for those responsible for vessel procurement