Daily Briefing November 19 2020
Free to read: Maersk focuses on boxes rather than ships | Refinery closures promise product lift | Ship finance post-Libor | IMO climate deal fails to calm critics
Good morning. Here’s our quick view of everything you need to know today.
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What to watch | Analysis | Markets | In other news
What to watch
Danish shipping giant Maersk is not about to return to the shipyards for new tonnage any time soon, and instead will focus its capital expenditure on acquiring new container equipment.
UK-based dry bulk operator Seastar has signed what is thought to be the first English law secured loan to incorporate a benchmark switch mechanism in readiness for the impending phase-out of the London Interbank Offered Rate.
Securing an international consensus for new energy efficiency requirements on existing ships has proven to be a challenging negotiation, but the compromise agreed this week offers a necessary building block for more stringent measures to come, according to IMO secretary general Kitack Lim.
Israel-based container line Zim has reported its best-ever quarter, with a $144m profit for the three months to the end of September. That marks an almost 3,000% increase over the corresponding quarter in 2019, despite the pandemic-driven reduction in demand.
Analysis
At least 17 oil refineries have announced they will shut since the Covid-19 demand downturn led to unprofitable crack spreads, raising questions over whether the outlook for the global product tanker fleet will improve as a result.
Markets
Catch up on the news from the past week in container, tanker and dry bulk markets with the Lloyd’s List Weekly Briefing.
Capesize owner GoodBulk has brought back dividends for shareholders on the strength of a brighter view of dry bulk prospects than it had three months ago.
In other news
Maersk Product Tankers has sold Maersk Etienne, the ship that was at the centre of an international furore over the summer after it rescued 27 migrants off the coast of North Africa at the request of Malta.
The UK government has pledged financial support for research projects to develop a zero-emission maritime sector. It is part of a £12bn programme announced by prime minister Boris Johnson which he says is a “global template for delivering net zero emissions” by 2050.
Congestion at Felixstowe, the UK’s largest container port, is expected to continue into December and possibly into the New Year, as unexpectedly high import volumes, slow-moving containers of personal protective equipment, and problems managing the high activity levels persist.
Faster-than-expected demand recovery and high freight rates led Maersk to a $1bn profit in the third quarter as the company again raised its earnings outlook for the year.
Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering has secured orders to build 10 very large crude carriers worth Won986bn ($890.5m) as large crude tanker orders continue to trickle in towards the end of 2020.
A bunkering vessel has been reported hijacked in the Gulf of Guinea. The Togo-flagged, 1995-built, 357 dwt Stelios K was about 40 nautical miles south of Lome, Togo, when its owners lost contact with the ship on November 16.
Seanergy Maritime, a Nasdaq-listed dry bulk owner, posted an increased third-quarter profit on Wednesday, voicing optimism about a continuing recovery in dry bulk freight rates.