West moves to larger Hong Kong office, supporting growth in China and Vietnam
West moves to larger Hong Kong office, supporting growth in China and Vietnam
in
Marine Insurance P&I Club News
28/04/2026
West P&I has reinforced its long-standing commitment to the Chinese and Vietnamese market with the relocation of its Hong Kong office to larger premises, reflecting continued investment in the region and the Club’s growing activities across China and Vietnam.
West has maintained a presence in Hong Kong since 1982 and today supports one of the largest portfolios of Chinese and Vietnamese shipping business among International Group Clubs. As of 2026, the Club’s regional book has grown to more than 1,800 vessels, making West the largest IG Club in China and Vietnam. Owned and chartered tonnage written from Hong Kong now exceeds 70 million gross tonnes, representing nearly 40% of the Club’s total entered tonnage.
The relocation to a larger office reflects this sustained growth and provides additional capacity to further strengthen underwriting, claims and loss preventi
Kalmar secured an order of electric empty container handlers from Lechman Terminais
Kalmar secured an order of electric empty container handlers from Lechman Terminais
in
Port News
28/04/2026
Kalmar has secured an order from long-term customer Lechman Terminais in Brazil for six Kalmar electric empty container handlers. The order was booked in Kalmar’s Q2 2026 order intake with delivery scheduled for Q1 of 2027.
The new electric empty container handlers will operate in a container depot in the town of Guarujá, located in the hinterland of the Port of Santos. The equipment is capable of stacking containers seven-high, and features the highest capacity of 400 kWh batteries, ensuring operational continuity beyond a full work shift.
Regional Shipping Networks Gain as Global Trade Routes Realign
Regional Shipping Networks Gain as Global Trade Routes Realign
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International Shipping News
28/04/2026
Global trade disruption and realignment are transforming the Red Sea Corridor into a pivotal hub for resilient supply chains, highlighting the importance of investment in infrastructure, technology and localisation to drive long-term value creation, reveals a new impact report by Oxford Business Group (OBG) in partnership with Folk Maritime.
Titled, “Trade Shifts, the Red Sea Corridor and Local Value Creation,” the impact report examines how evolving trade routes are redefining maritime competitiveness across the Red Sea, the Arabian Gulf, East Africa, India and South-east Asia. It highlights the growing importance of infrastructure development, technology adoption and low-carbon strategies in strengthening resilience and enabling sustainable growth.
The report finds that the reconfiguration of global supply chains is accelerating investment in maritime infrastructure and regional s
BIMCO: Geopolitics, supply chains – and the human face of global trade
BIMCO: Geopolitics, supply chains – and the human face of global trade
in
International Shipping News
28/04/2026
E
vents in the Middle East are once again reminding the world of a fundamental truth: global supply chains are not abstract systems. They are physical, exposed, and deeply intertwined with the wider world economy.
Disruption in one region now reverberates rapidly across markets, industries and societies. Energy flows, commodity prices, inflationary pressures and trade routes are all affected – not in theory, but in practice.
CargoTech: The power of tech in times of crisis
CargoTech: The power of tech in times of crisis
in
International Shipping News
28/04/2026
In the face of ongoing instability in the Middle East, CargoTech and its member companies show that tailored technology drives successful crisis management. With their unique blend of innovation and industry expertise, CargoTech’s members intelligently combine market and commercial data with advanced artificial intelligence (AI), to support air cargo companies in navigating unpredictable environments, optimising network capacity, and making informed decisions under pressure.
CargoTech’s mission is clear: to provide customers with real-time visibility, dynamic scenario planning opportunities, and agile decision support during crises. By building AI components into the tech tools across its portfolio, CargoTech enables freight forwarders, airlines, and logistics providers to react quickly to market shifts, capacity disruptions, and evolving customer needs.
Understanding customer needs during crisis
Asia-US container rates stable to slightly higher; tanker rates mixed
Asia-US container rates stable to slightly higher; tanker rates mixed
in
International Shipping News
28/04/2026
Rates for shipping containers from east Asia and China to the US rose slightly this week while liquid chemical tanker rates saw slight declines on the major trade lanes and a bump for cargoes destined for India.
CONTAINER RATES
Container rates from supply chain advisors Drewry rose by 4% from Shanghai to Los Angeles and are up by 12% from the same week a year ago, and were essentially flat from Shanghai to New York, with rates being down by 1% over the past year.
The following chart from Drewry shows rates ex-Shanghai.
Drewry said the increase on the transpacific route was driven by carrier capacity reductions to counter seasonal demand softness.
According to Drewry’s Container Capacity Insight, nine blank sailings have been announced for next week to manage higher capacity, and they expect freight rates to remain relatively less volatile in the next week.
Rates from online s
FMC Chair Joins U.S. Opposition to IMO Carbon Plan With Warning
Photo: BNMK 0819/Shutterstock
FMC Chair Joins U.S. Opposition to IMO Carbon Plan With Warning
Mike Schuler
Total Views: 0
April 27, 2026
The chair of the Federal Maritime Commission has joined the U.S. delegation to
high-stakes climate talks
at the UN’s International Maritime Organization, accompanied by an explicit warning that could signal a more confrontational U.S.
Russia-Linked LNG Carriers Head North After Reflagging, Signalling Arctic Fleet Expansion
Photo by VladSV / Shutterstock.com
Russia-Linked LNG Carriers Head North After Reflagging, Signalling Arctic Fleet Expansion
Malte Humpert
Total Views: 0
April 28, 2026
Four recently reflagged liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers linked to new Turkish-controlled entities are heading north in the Atlantic, in what analysts say could mark a new push in Russia’s effort to expand its constrained export fleet.
Vessel tracking data shows
Kosmos
and
Merkuriy
steaming north off the coast of Portugal, while
Luch
and
Orion
are following currently off West Africa. In recent days
Luch
started signaling Murmansk as the intended destination.
The four vessels – formerly part of Oman’s Asyad Shipping fleet – were sold en bloc earlier this year for roughly $110 million, according to company disclosures and shipbroking sources. Since then, they have undergone multiple renamings, brief re-registration under the Indian Register of Shipping, and eventual transfer to the Russian flag and maritime register.
New requirement for Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) Systems enters into force on 1 May 2026
New requirement for Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) Systems enters into force on 1 May 2026
in
International Shipping News
28/04/2026
Recent changes to the SCR Guidelines have altered how NOx measurement accuracy is assessed for catalyst monitoring. The former ±5% accuracy requirement has been replaced by a more flexible but less clearly defined concept of “sufficient accuracy”. This update places greater responsibility on applicants to justify the performance and monitoring of the lifetime of NOx catalysts.
Key changes to the requirements for NOx measurements
The requirements for NOx measurement devices used to monitor catalyst condition and potential degradation have been amended.
Different methods = different conclusions: why standard methods matter in EGCS assessments
Different methods = different conclusions: why standard methods matter in EGCS assessments
in
International Shipping News
28/04/2026
Claims about the potential environmental impact of exhaust gas cleaning systems (scrubbers) have become increasingly detached from the realities of how environmental risk is actually determined. That matters, because the methods used to assess evidence are as consequential as the evidence itself.
Across many of the arguments made against EGCS, a similar pattern emerges: assumptions of harm are drawn from the presence alone of certain substances in discharge water, from desk-top calculations, or from worst-case modelling, without full consideration of how environmental risk is assessed in real-world conditions. Understanding that distinction matters in regulation as much as it does in science.
Andreas Chrysostomou
Standard methods = consistent findings
The presence of metals and PAHs in discharge water does not in itself establish environmental harm.