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What to watch   |   Analysis   |   Opinion   |   Markets   |   In other news

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What to watch

With newbuilding orders forecast to hit a 50-year low point in 2020, could the economic fallout from coronavirus actually help to drive decarbonisation as governments consider stimulus packages and investments to rebuild economic growth, resetting the carbon trajectory in the process?

The value of goods stacking up in many ports worldwide may now top the capped maximum payouts for any one accident set by insurers, known as accumulation limits, according to cargo insurance experts.

Pacific International Lines is betting on trade volumes between the emerging economies of Asia and Africa staging a faster rebound from the drastic downturn brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, compared with those for the transpacific and Asia-Europe trades

Analysis

The share of the tanker fleet that is chartered to store oil may have jumped significantly over the past few weeks, but the real numbers of tankers that are serving this purpose could become more apparent over the coming weeks.

The week in charts: Floating storage capacity continues at elevated highs despite a marginal drop, as VLCCs still demand charter premiums, while in China, ship call figures show the potential reduction in volumes is already being felt.

Dry bulk owners are holding out for an upturn in demand and spot market rates in the second half of this year, as earnings have remained below breakeven levels for most classes of vessel.

Opinion

Lloyd’s List Podcast: The doom-laden forecasts have been coming thick and fast this week, warning of the steepest downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. To help put these figures into context we have drafted in Tom Rogers, head of macroeconomic consulting for Asia at Oxford Economics, and our China editor Cichen Shen.

Markets

The port of Virginia, citing decreased throughput, has said it will close one of its container terminals and direct incoming volumes to two other container terminals at the facility

In other news

European port groups have called on Brussels to facilitate crew changes at all European ports in an effort to keep trade flowing during the coronavirus crisis.

The maritime sector could benefit from safety practices adopted and implemented by other industries, according to a new study.

Carriers have been accused of benefiting from falling oil prices at the expense of their customers and using bunker charges to make up for falling revenues.

Many of the service cuts being applied in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic could become permanent, putting pressure on shippers to recalculate their supply chains.

Exmar chairman Baron Philippe Bodson has died after being diagnosed with coronavirus, the company said. He was 75.