Dry Bulk Shipping: Closure of Strait of Hormuz curbs demand growth
Dry Bulk Shipping: Closure of Strait of Hormuz curbs demand growth
in
International Shipping News
30/04/2026
“T
he Iran war and the resulting disruptions to ship transits through the Strait of Hormuz have increased uncertainty for both the global economy and the dry bulk market. Around 4% of dry bulk cargoes and tonne mile demand typically sail through the strait and at present, and around 210 ships, equivalent to roughly 1% of the dry bulk fleet, are currently trapped in the Persian Gulf,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analysis Manager at BIMCO.
Given the high uncertainty over when transits may resume, we present two forecast scenarios. The “SoH closed” scenario assumes the strait remains effectively closed indefinitely, while the “SoH open” scenario assumes an imminent reopening.
Korea Launches Shipbuilding-Shipping Alliance
Korea Launches Shipbuilding-Shipping Alliance
in
Shipbuilding News
30/04/2026
The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy jointly announced that they co-hosted the inaugural ceremony of the “Shipbuilding-Shipping Mutually Beneficial Development Strategic Council” at Lotte Hotel in Seoul on April 28.
The two associations representing the shipbuilding and shipping industries had agreed at the “Autonomous Navigation Vessel M.AX Alliance Strategic Meeting” last December to establish a mutual cooperation council at the earliest possible time, and this event marks the fulfillment of that commitment.
The event was attended by the ministers of both ministries, along with representatives from Korea Gas Corporation, the Korea Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering Association, the Korea Shipping Association, and the heads of major domestic shipbuilders and shipping companies, drawing some 100 participants in total who reaffirmed their commitment to strength
FUJAIRAH DATA: Oil product stocks fall 6% to fourth straight record low
FUJAIRAH DATA: Oil product stocks fall 6% to fourth straight record low
in
Port News
30/04/2026
Oil product inventories at Fujairah in the UAE fell 6.3% in the week ended April 27 to 6.982 million barrels, hitting a record low for the fourth straight week and extending the drop since the US-Iran war started to 66%, according to Fujairah Oil Industry Zone data published April 29.
As recently as early March, inventories of heavy distillates and light distillates each exceeded 8 million barrels. The total has now dropped eight weeks in a row, according to the data. Fujairah has been attacked at least six times since the war started on Feb.
US LNG arbitrage to Asia open via Panama Canal; laden flows limited
US LNG arbitrage to Asia open via Panama Canal; laden flows limited
in
International Shipping News
30/04/2026
US arbitrage to Asia through the Panama Canal opens amid stronger Asian demand following the Middle East conflict, although a recent rise in LNG transits through the canal is driven by unladen carriers returning east rather than westbound laden shipments
Platts assessed the US-North Asia via Panama Canal versus US-Atlantic arbitrage at plus 53.3 cents/MMBtu on April 28, while the route via the Cape of Good Hope was assessed at minus 67.7 cents/MMBtu, indicating that US cargoes via the Panama Canal remained economically favored into Northeast Asia, while the Cape route is less economic.
“The arbitrage seems to be opening up, there are some cargoes going to Southeast and South Asia, and it looks like China is attracting a few,” an LNG trader previously said.
In light of this, LNG transits through the Panama Canal have totaled 12 so far in April, based on data from S&P Global CERA
Ship Recycling: Buying Interest Strong, But Tonnage Availability Limited
Ship Recycling: Buying Interest Strong, But Tonnage Availability Limited
in
Hellenic Shipping News
30/04/2026
T
he ship recycling market is lacking available tonnage, despite strong buying interest. In its latest weekly report, Best Oasis (
www.best-oasis.com
), a leading cash buyer of ships, said that “the Indian market remains reasonably stable; however, activity is limited by a continued lack of available recycling tonnage under current conditions. Local recyclers remain interested in acquiring units within their target price levels, though they are unable to compete with the stronger pricing offered in Bangladesh.
The United States Did Not Just Outsource Shipbuilding. It Outsourced Demand.
Pudget Sound Naval Shipyard worker Troy Wood carbon arks rudder access patches aboard USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), while in port at Naval Base Kitsap-Bremerton, Washington, (U.S. Navy photo by Christian Gonzalez)
The United States Did Not Just Outsource Shipbuilding. It Outsourced Demand.
John Konrad
Total Views: 1
April 29, 2026
Why America’s Cargo Demand Is Building Maritime Capacity Everywhere but at Home
By
Bruce Kimbrell
(Policy Op-Ed) I spent last week at the
Sea-Air-Space
Conference at the Gaylord in Maryland listening to discussions about American shipbuilding.
Across panels, the focus was consistent: improving efficiency and throughput.
ABS Acquires RMC Global to Strengthen Cyber, Risk and Resilience Capabilities
ABS Acquires RMC Global to Strengthen Cyber, Risk and Resilience Capabilities
gCaptain
Total Views: 0
April 29, 2026
ABS, through its affiliate ABSG Consulting Inc. (ABS Consulting), has today announced the acquisition of RMC Global (RMC), a leading provider of industrial cybersecurity, risk management and resiliency solutions.
The acquisition strengthens ABS Consulting’s capabilities and market position, bringing together two organizations with complementary expertise, shared values and a common mission. Combining RMC’s capabilities with ABS Consulting’s scale, technical depth and global resources, unlocks more integrated solutions for clients operating in increasingly complex risk environments.
ABS Chairman and CEO John McDonald said: “Clients are facing increasing operational risk, cyber threats, and regulatory pressure.
From Supply Disruption to Transit Disruption: What April Reveals About the Global LNG Shock
From Supply Disruption to Transit Disruption: What April Reveals About the Global LNG Shock
in
International Shipping News
29/04/2026
What appeared in March 2026 as a supply shock in global LNG markets has, by April, evolved into a broader transit disruption affecting the physical movement of gas through the Strait of Hormuz. Damage to Qatari infrastructure has reduced Qatar’s LNG export capacity by ~17%, tightening global supply, though the global shortfall is smaller and partly offset by other exporters. The United States has emerged as the primary alternative supplier, while Asia absorbs the most acute impacts and Europe faces growing indirect pressure heading into the refill season.
Key figures at a glance:
>2 bcm/week LNG flows lost from Qatar & UAE
~17% reduction in Qatari LNG exports (~3–5% global impact)
$20bn/yr estimated annual Qatari revenue loss
The Shift: From Supply Shock to Transit Disruption
The global LNG crisis that began in early March with damage to Qatari export fa
The List: How Iran Managed Access to the Strait of Hormuz and Where That System Broke Down
The List: How Iran Managed Access to the Strait of Hormuz and Where That System Broke Down
in
International Shipping News
29/04/2026
O
n the morning of April 18, 2026, the master of a crude oil tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz broadcast a transmission that remains the clearest summary of what our observation window had documented over the preceding seven days: “You gave us clearance. We are second on the list.”
Seventeen hours earlier, Iran’s Foreign Minister had declared the strait completely open to commercial shipping. The gunboats that approached without a standard VHF challenge were also very real.
UKMTO Warning 037-26, issued at 09:20 UTC that morning, confirmed what vessel tracking had already begun to reveal: a tanker had been fired upon 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman.
Global Biofuels Alliance targets SAF corridors, advances methanol for marine sector
Global Biofuels Alliance targets SAF corridors, advances methanol for marine sector
in
International Shipping News
29/04/2026
The Global Biofuels Alliance is in active negotiations with the governments across the world to establish a sustainable aviation fuel corridor linking global airports, a framework designed to drive SAF policy harmonization and standardization across jurisdictions and position India as a global aviation bunkering geography, GBA Director Joshua Wycliffe said at an industry event in New Delhi.
“GBA is in very active talks with the governments of the Netherlands and Singapore to work on a SAF corridor between airports — between let’s say Amsterdam-Delhi, Amsterdam-Mumbai, Singapore-Mumbai, Singapore-Delhi,” Wycliffe said at the Indian Federation of Green Energy’s Green Transport Conclave in New Delhi from April 23-24.
“What it does is it not just promotes SAF, it promotes standardization, brings governments together, brings policy mandates together, and also helps d