While some in the market are expecting freight rate increases of up to 20%, others are more lukewarm. In any case, capesizes should be able to benefit with an anticipated rise in iron ore volumes from Brazil versus a muted 2019, while minor bulks will be hit by Indonesia’s ban on nickel ore exports

Container trade is forecast to have increased by 2% to 1.3bn tonnes in 2019. In 2020, growth is projected to 4.9% driven by strong intra-Asian trade but also firm growth on the main trade lanes

Even as sentiment for liquefied petroleum gas shipping is veering towards an improvement in the fortunes of owners as 2020 rolls on, those often unexpected outages, like the ones witnessed this year, still loom large in many minds. However, an intriguing demand story for LPG and moderate supply growth points towards a strong 2020 for LPG shipping

The 2020 fortunes of the crude and tanker market can be distilled into five elements — sanctions, storage, scrubbers, sulphur and supply — which will determine the direction for a sector finally seeing reasons for cheer after a protracted rates decline

The implementation of the sulphur cap and an impending decabronisation measure — either from London or Brussels — will dominate next year

The outlook for P&I and hull insurance can be summed up in two words: ‘more expensive’, thanks to the cull of the worst-performers at Lloyd’s, which has seen over 30 underwriters decide to axe at least one marine line