S.A. MALLIAROUDAKIS MARITIME (UK) LTD.

  This article is based on the earlier research works of Mr. Daejin Lee to explain the recent trend of the shipping market with a special focus on dry bulk. Shipping is 'Pigs or Chickens'? 'Shipping is just like the country market. By the time the farmer arrives at market with his pig and finds that all the other farmers have bred pigs, it is too late. Price will fall, and the farmer, who has feed bills to pay must accept the price on offer. But this situation was created a year earlier when prices were high and everyone started breeding pigs. The smart farmers saw what other farmers were doing and switched to chickens. This has nothing to do with what the demand for pigs or chickens. It is a supply-side management. We conclude that, like the farmer, the successful shipping company must know when to steer clear of pigs!' * The story of 'Chicken and Pigs' is one of the best parts I have read in 'Maritime economics'. Bad investments often flow from

The dry bulk market first experienced the worst ever freight market in recent memory but then tripled in a matter of months. Tankers have seen their rates halved, and limited interest for secondary market acquisitions and relatively weak prices. The containership market saw a government-blessed entity (Hanjin) go belly up, which pretty much by itself sums the state of the market; also, seven-year old panamax containerships these days are heading to the scrapyard. Finally, the offshore market has seen brand-new, top-tier drillships idling while another huge oil discovery in Texas has made offshore drilling an even more precarious proposition. However, with the spirit of being thankful upon us, for the ‘harvest’ the industry has had this year and the overall results accomplished (mostly intangible results), one has to be hopeful and even thankful for the shipping industry’s prospects. The drop of the market, especially in the dry bulk, has been the first time that peo

WISTA UK has said that smart ships are likely to be carrying cargoes within 10 years but all in the logistics chain need to adapt in order to make good use of the new technology and the huge amount of data that will be available as a result. According to Sue Terpilowski, President of WISTA UK – the Women’s International Shipping & Trading Association UK – shipping will go from a “poor beginning” in terms of generating and using data to be at the forefront of new technology. All thanks to customer demand. Ms Terpilowski, who is also Managing Director of Image Line Communications, said the change would see “talking” ships within 10 years. “Even the paint will be able to tell you about the waves hitting the ship. These ships are going to be telling you about the weight and the stresses on deck when slow steaming would be appropriate and many more operational elements. There are many opportunities for the industry, but is it ready to take advantage?” And she continued: “Ship i

NEW YORK, Nov 16 (Reuters) – Shares of U.S. shipping companies shot higher again on Wednesday, causing volatility halts in a number of stocks and raising questions among investors and analysts over the extent of their sharp post-election rally. The jump in share prices and unusually heavy trading volume even surprised analysts who follow the stocks, although some said the gains appeared to result in part from optimism that commodity demand would increase under President-elect Donald Trump. At the center of the rally has been DryShips Inc, an $82.9 million market-capitalization company that has been halted for volatility in recent sessions and is up about 1,500 percent since its close on the Nov. 8 Election Day. The stock was halted again on Wednesday, and Nasdaq requested additional information from the company. Shares of Diana Containerships Inc, Globus Maritime Ltd and Pangaea Logistics Sol Ltd also were halted multiple times for volatility. A stock’s outsized

Over 100 more classic Panamaxes would need to be scrapped in the coming months to re-balance supply and demand, and reduce the total pool to less than 470 units, compared to 670 units four years ago, according to Alphaliner. Only such a drastic reduction could elevate rates from their current all-time lows of USD 4,200 – USD 4,500 per day, with positive side effects on the 2,700 – 3,800 TEU size bracket as well. Hard decisions have to be taken, such as scrapping ten-year-old ships on the eve of their second Classification Special Survey. Since many cash-short owners can’t afford the survey-related costs, such vessels are being laid up, sold for scrap, or sold to bargain buyers at distressed prices. Since the opening of the new Panama Canal locks on 26 June, no fewer than 120 classic Panamax ships, referring to vessels of 4,000-5,300 TEU on a 13 row/32.30 m beam, have been displaced from trans-Panama routes. “The exodus is set to continue, with a further 30-40 cl