Tag: Shipping

Container Corporation reports over 8% YoY volume growth in FY24

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The Container Corporation of India Ltd (CONCOR) has reported more than 8% growth year-on-year in total physical volume handled by the state-owned company for the financial year 2023–24 (FY24).

In its provisional updates for the quarter and financial year ending March 31, 2024, released on Monday, the Railway Ministry public sector undertaking (PSU) reported total volumes of 12,44,798 twenty-feet equivalent units, or TEUs, in Q4FY24, reflecting an increase of 11.24% for the quarter-on-quarter (QoQ).

In the preceding quarter, total throughput stood at 11,19,034 TEUs.

The company’s total throughput for the financial year 2023–24 stood at 47,19,984 TEUs, an 8.23% rise compared to 43,61,131 TEUs in FY23.

Of this, EXIM volumes grew 7.08% YoY to 36,48,076 TEUs in the March 2024 quarter as against 34,06,864 TEUs in the year-ago quarter. For the entire FY24, the EXIM volumes stood at 9,34,058 TEUs, up 9.73% YoY against 8,51,261 TEUs in FY23.

Similarly, for the quarter ending March 2024, the total volumes for the domestic segment reached 3,10,740 TEUs, reflecting an increase of 16.05% YoY compared to 2,67,773 TEUs in Q3FY23.

The total volumes in the domestic segment in FY24 increased to 10,71,908 TEUs, up 12.33% against 9,54,267 TEUs in FY23.

Container Corporation of India Ltd (CONCOR) is a prominent player in the transportation and handling of containers industry. The company’s network comprises 66 inland container depots and container freight stations across the country, including 62 terminals and three strategic tie-ups.

Earlier in January, Container Corporation Chairman and Managing Director Sanjay Swarup, in an interview with CNBC-TV18, projected 10-12% volume growth for the company in FY24.

Swarup said that the company was able to retain customers despite the relatively expensive services. In the first nine months of FY24, ending December 2023, the company registered 7.2% volume growth.

Shares of CONCOR were trading at ₹929 apiece, down 1.88%, on the NSE at closing.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

National Maritime Day 2024: History, significance, theme and more

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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National Maritime Day is celebrated on April 5 every year. The day underlines the significance of Maritime operations and the country expresses gratitude to those who spend months in the sea. In 1919, on April 5, India took its first step towards marine operations when SS Loyalty, the first merchant ship, started its journey from the Mumbai coast.

Let’s look closer at the significance, history, and theme of National Maritime Day 2024

Celebrating 60 years of Maritime Glory: History of National Maritime Day

On 5th April 1919, SS Loyalty owned by Scindia Steam Navigation Company Ltd, started its journey marking India’s historic move toward maritime trade and commerce. The merchant ship started its maiden voyage from the coasts of Mumbai and sailed to London. The success of the SS Loyalty attracted a wave of investment in the Indian Shipping Industry.

The growth of maritime commerce led to the establishment of the Ministry of Shipping in 1962. In 1964, the government declared April 5 as National Maritime Day to honour the historic SS Loyalty. India became a member of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in 1949 strengthening its presence in waters.

Waves of Opportunity: Highlighting the significance of Indian Maritime

Maritime trade is called the heart of global trade and plays a key role in globalisation. In today’s world, the sea route is the most effective way of transporting goods for its massive capacity. Seabourne trade is also considered the most cost-effective mode of transport compared to other modes of transportation.

As India moves towards being a global powerhouse, marine trade is said to be the backbone of the country’s exports. Hence, April 5 is dedicated to all the members working in India’s maritime industry and contributing significantly to the nation’s global trade and commerce.

Know about the theme of this year’s National Maritime Day

The theme of the Nation Maritime Day 2024 is yet to be announced by the Ministry of Shipping.

As India gets ready to celebrate National Maritime 2024, it reflects the rich maritime heritage and a bright future with thousands of possibilities. From the pioneering voyage of the SS Loyalty to becoming a global shipping powerhouse, India has taken significant strides in the shipping industry with 13 major ports.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Cost of freight, insurance rises for shipments due to Red Sea conflict; imports currently cushioned by inventory

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The cost of freight and insurance for shipments has risen in the last one month owing to the ongoing conflict in the Red Sea, which has forced ships to avoid the Suez Canal and take a longer route around the African peninsula, sources in the government told CNBC-TV18.

Government officials met shipping companies and exporters on Thursday, January 4, to take stock of the financial impact of the Red Sea conflict, where it was informed that, though the cushion of a month’s inventory is currently available for imported items, disruptions may arise in the near future if the conflict prolongs.

A government official has said that there’s no shortage of shipping containers, but the turnaround time has increased by 14 days.

With the containers taking a longer route across Africa, trade of goods with the US, Europe, and Latin America isn’t just taking longer but also costing more.

ALSO READ | Red Sea woes will trigger surge in freight costs and export delays: Centrum

The official also said that the Ministry of Defence is helping to escort many ships with consignments in the course of their travel on the high seas.

On December 21, 2023, CNBC-TV18 reported that basmati rice exports from India to Western countries may become 15% to 20% more expensive if the conflict in the Red Sea doesn’t subside soon.

Basmati rice exports from India had grown by 20% year-on-year in the period between April 1 to December 8, 2023.

However, the government remains hopeful that the increased prices of basmati rice won’t impact its overall global demand.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Suez Canal crisis: GE Shipping says tanker rates stable so far but may spike if situation worsens

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Some of world’s largest shipping companies halted their operations in the Red Sea from December 15 in response to the intensified assaults on international shipping routes by Iran-supported Houthi militants. This area is a crucial passage for vessels coming from the Suez Canal.

These shipping companies now plan to reroute the shipments via the Cape of Good Hope, triggering concerns of a spike in container rates due to the additional days at sea.

GE Shipping’s Executive Director and CFO, G Shivakumar, told CNBC-TV18 that there hasn’t been much impact on the tanker rates yet, but if the situation worsens, the rates could spike.

Also Read: GE Shipping sees strong demand in tanker market

GE Shipping is India’s largest private-sector shipping company that transports liquid, gas, and solid bulk products.

Explaining the potential implications, Shivakumar said that about 10% of the world’s crude trade flows through the Bab el-Mandeb, the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.

“If you have to reroute that via the Cape of Good Hope, it means, depending on the voyage that you’re doing, its between 20 and 60% extra time. If you apply an average of 40% on 10% of the trade, that’s 4% extra demand for ships or reduce supply,” he noted pointing out that this additional 4% demand can impact the demand-supply balance increasing rates significantly.

Positioned between Africa and the Gulf in the Middle East, the Red Sea is flanked by Egypt’s Suez Canal in the north and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the south. In addition to these key maritime passageways, the Sumed pipeline traversing Egypt plays a significant role in global oil logistics.

Data from the US Energy Information Administration reveals that these routes combined were responsible for about 12% of all seaborne oil trade in the first half of 2023.  Approximately 8% of global trade in liquefied natural gas also transits through this region, per a Wall Street Journal report.

While the US has also begun a security operation to protect seaborne traffic from the Houthi groups, Shivakumar said it remains to be seen if it will help ease the situation.

Shivakumar said there has not been any impact on prices over the last four days; product tankers continue to earn around $30,000 – $35,000 a day, while crude tankers are earning anywhere between $40,000 and $60,000 a day.

Meanwhile, on December 19, oil prices traded near the highest close in two weeks. West Texas Intermediate held above $72 a barrel after settling at its highest since December 4. Global benchmark Brent traded near $78.

Prices jumped as much as 4% on Monday after oil giant BP Plc said it would pause all shipments through the waterway and Equinor ASA said it’s diverting vessels away.

GE shipping shares were up nearly 4% at ₹959 apiece. The stock has gained nearly 22% in the past month versus gains of a little over 8% in the benchmark Nifty 50. The company’s market capitalisation is currently around ₹13,730 crore. 

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

World Maritime Day 2023: History, Significance and Theme

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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World Maritime Day is observed every year on the last Thursday of September. This year it will be observed globally on September 28. The day, which is observed to recognise the contribution of people engaged in the maritime industry, also aims to draw public attention towards various issues related to the industry such as shipping, marine trade and environmental causes, among others.

It is important to note that day recognises the role of seafarers, service agents, and marine officials, considering the challenging work they do.

World Maritime Day was established by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and every year a new theme is decided to observe the day.

World Maritime Day 2023: Theme

According to the International Maritime Organization, the World Maritime Day theme for 2023 is ‘MARPOL at 50 – Our commitment goes on’. This theme reflects the organisation’s long history of protecting the environment from the impact of shipping via a robust regulatory framework and emphasises its ongoing commitment to this important work.

ALSO READ | Indian Coast Guard Day 2023: History and significance

It also highlights the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), which covers the prevention of pollution of the marine environment by ships from operational or accidental causes.

Meanwhile, an event will be held on September 28, 2023, at IMO Headquarters, London, and online.

History

In 1948, an international conference in Geneva passed a resolution that led to the foundation of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to look after the business and operations in the maritime industry. The organisation’s role was aimed at looking after technological collaboration, environmental regulation, and legal issues, and to ensure safety for every member of the workforce. World Maritime Day was observed for the first time on March 17, 1978, to celebrate the establishment of the IMO Convention.

Significance

Just like any other industry, the maritime industry has been a major contributor to the world economy. With the help of smooth marine services, today nearly all products can be shipped across countries.

The significance of the industry was clearly understood during the COVID-19 pandemic when various industries faced a crisis after the global shipping industry was forced to stop its operations. According to the United Nations, the global shipping industry transports more than 80 per cent of international trade to people and communities all over the world.

World Maritime Day is an important occasion to recognise the role of safe, secure and efficient international transport provided by the shipping industry.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Container shortage: Average prices, one-way leasing rates skyrocket amid peak shipping season

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Rising average container prices and a massive increase in one-way pickup rates amid container shortage are pinching exporters and shippers in India at a time when the shipping season is at its peak, according to the monthly container logistics report by Container xChange, an operating platform for container logistic companies.

The report titled ‘Where Are All the Containers?’ shows that the average container prices increased by 58 percent last month as compared to June 2022 while the one-way pickup cost skyrocketed 200 percent in August from July.

July generally marks the beginning of the peak shipping season.

“India has withered the rising global disruptions with more resilience than many other countries. However, the ripple effect of disruptions caused well over the past two years has caused significant market and container imbalances in the Indian shipping industry,” said the report.

Amid global container shortage as demand surged after the pandemic, the government is in the process of coming up with a roadmap to boost container manufacturing in the country with a cluster-based approach, media reports said earlier.

“India’s decision to expand its container manufacturing will come on an opportune time. Expanding domestic manufacturing will help ease the strain and make containers available for other nations despite containers being stuck at western countries and China,” said Christian Roeloffs, Cofounder and CEO, Container xChange.

Average container prices up significantly since pandemic

According to the report, India has been appearing on the list of costliest ports for both 20 ft DCs (dry containers) as well as 40 ft HCs (high cube containers).

While the average rates for 20 ft DCs have gone up by 61.15 percent from $900 in July 2020 to $2317 in July 2022, prices for 40 ft HCs have risen by 57.34 percent from $1800 in July 2020 to $2317 in July 2022.

“The country has a vast coastline, and this gives it a very good opportunity to expand its shipping economy. However, there are many roadblocks, hinterland transportation being one, cost of containers being another. Our platform always shows Indian ports as one of the costlier ports. This is also because there are many charges that make the movement of containers costlier from India,” it said.

However, the average trading prices for these boxes, for cargo-worthy 20 ft DCs, in Mundra, Nhava Sheva, and Chennai fell marginally to $2384, $2362, and $2356.

On the other hand, for cargo-worthy 40 ft HCs, the trading prices dropped sharply in Mumbai and Mundra by 5.51 percent to $3773 and 8.85 percent to $3,605, respectively.

“As the sailing disruptions followed by container shortages continue this year, many shipping lines have skipped India port calls to maintain schedule integrity. This has subsequently affected the demand and has further led to a gradual yet marginal decline in average prices for cargo-worthy containers,” said the report.

For leasing boxes from China to India, users had to pay $187.5 for 20DCs and $175 for 40HCs in July, it added.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Asia’s inflation may be fuelled by rising shipping costs: IMF

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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While Asia’s inflation has remained lower than global peers, rising shipping costs may change that soon, said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its blog.

As economies recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the pent-up demand, higher cash flow from financial stimuli, supply challenges and global logistical disruptions have contributed to inflation in many countries.

But Asian economies, both advanced and emerging, have managed to navigate through the pandemic without reaching similar levels of inflation.

IMF data shows that headline inflation in Asian Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDE) stood at 2.9 percent. Non-Asian EMDE headline inflation was at 6.6 percent at the same time. Asian Advanced Economies (AE) had a headline inflation of 1.3 percent compared to 3.3 percent in other AE.

Differences in inflation figures for more volatile goods like food and energy were starker. Food inflation was only at 1.6 percent in Asian EMDE compared to 9.1 in Non-Asian EMDE. Energy inflation in Asian AE was at 4.2 percent compared to 6.8 percent in other AE.

“Several factors explain Asia’s lower inflation. Among Asia’s emerging economies, a delayed recovery has kept core inflation—which strips out volatile food and energy costs—running at half the rate of peers in other regions,” the IMF said.

Global pressures increasing economic inflation are expected to gradually recede in 2022. But increasing prices for shipping costs may prove to be an issue for Asian economies.

“One benchmark measure of global shipping costs, the Baltic Dry Index, tripled this year through October: our analysis shows such large increases in shipping costs boost inflation for 12 months, which could add about 1.5 percentage points to the pace of Asia’s inflation in the second half of 2022,” said the international economic body.

The rise in global shipping rates has been precipitated by the turbulent changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. When the pandemic first forced countries to close down in 2020, international trade was brought to a screeching halt. While the effect of lockdown on maritime shipping was less severe than initially thought, its repercussions are still being felt. The economic recovery demands global shipping to catch up to the pent up demand for shipping and trade while global logistics chains lie in a shambles.

In 2021, maritime trade had to suddenly ramp up its services, something that it was unprepared for. Local restrictions due to the Delta variant made matters more complicated. The Suez-Ever Given crisis earlier this year added to the woes.

Container shortages, with containers being stuck far inland in port, labour shortages due to lockdown restrictions, higher costs for fuel, and ports backed up with ships trying to load and unload meant that shipping times were extended by several weeks, and costs continued to rise. While prices have marginally declined from all-time highs earlier in the year as the peak season recedes, they still remain at elevated levels.

The World Container Index is still up by 169 percent, with prices of $9,292.39 per 40ft on December 16, according to data from Drewry, an independent maritime research consultancy.

Experts estimate that it can take up to 30 months for prices to fall back down to normal, but additional pressures may make the new prices ‘stickier’. For consumers in the meantime, this can lead to prices of certain goods go up by up to 10 percent. Items like computers and other electronic products, bulky items like furniture, and apparel and clothing products can all see an increase of 10 percent in their cost, according to estimates by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in a report. The UNCTAD report highlighted that the surge in freight rates can contribute to a 1.5 percent increase in consumer prices globally.

Read Also | Explained: Why inflation rates are increasing across the globe

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Carbon cuts a huge challenge for shipping industry; can it be electrified?

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The shipping industry remains one of the most polluting energy sources in the modern world. Large ships accounted for 2.2 percent of global human-made emissions in 2012. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) expects shipping emissions to jump by 50-250 percent by 2050, if no mitigating actions are taken.

Marine shipping contributes one billion tonnes of carbon emissions each year already and market researchers at IDTechEx One have calculated that a large ship emits as much CO2 as 70,000 cars.

It is unlikely that shipping is going away anytime soon. With over two million merchant ships around in global fleets — with nearly 54,000 of them being ships of 1000 GT — the shipping industry is looking at alternatives for its highly-polluting fossil fuel. The IMO in 2018 had set an initial goal of cutting emissions from international shipping by at least 50 percent by 2050 when compared with 2008.

Also read: Shipping industry proposes levy to speed up zero carbon future

The challenge, however, is to find viable alternative fuels for ships. Clean Air Task Force research has pointed out that while ammonia remains a likely option for replacing oil for shipping fuel, it would be 3X as costly. The costs will be ultimately passed on to consumers. Synthetic fuels and biofuel blends were also seen as some of the alternatives for fossil fuel but would still contribute to carbon emissions while being costlier than shipping fuel at the same time and thus can only play a transitionary role.

“Most of the solutions we’ve read about and seen will all wind up costing the consumer more,” Steven Henderson, Co-Founder of Fleetzero said. “Either they use a fuel that is a derivative of a fuel we use today, or it’s a fuel that is going to cost more.”

With a lack of viable alternative fuels, and the rising impetus to reduce its greenhouse emissions, the industry is increasingly looking towards electric batteries. Pressure from larger corporations like Amazon, IKEA, Patagonia, Michelin and Unilever is also pushing global shipping to move to zero-carbon emissions by 2040.

While most modern ships are partly electric — the ship’s transmission being powered by an electric motor that itself is powered by a diesel engines — the technological hurdle remains in scaling up batteries for ships. The hurdle of using electric motors for ships is that batteries need time to recharge and ships often do not have enough time at port to recharge their batteries quickly enough.

For now, electric ships have mostly been relegated to smaller passenger vessels and ferries that run for smaller distances. Giant container ships longer than the Eiffel Tower, however, need much more energy than what today’s battery infrastructure can achieve.

Also read: Zero emission but electric vehicles aren’t so green as projected; here’s why

But a new solution is quickly emerging — battery swapping. Instead of recharging batteries on the ships themselves, ships may be able to switch out their large batteries in port for fresh batteries in order to reduce turnaround time.

More research is needed before the shipping industry as a whole can be electrified but increased pressure and investments from large companies can hasten the process considerably.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

National Monetisation Pipeline: Here’s a deep-dive into airports and shipping

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The government’s Rs 6 lakh crore monetisation plan relies heavily on five sectors—roads, railways, airports, shipping and power—that contribute more than 80 percent to the monetisation blueprint.

CNBC-TV18’s Anu Sharma puts a spotlight on airports and shipping, the two infrastructure sectors that contribute over 5 percent to the Rs 6 lakh crore worth National Monetisation Pipeline.

First up, a look at the aviation sector, where the government is looking to get private players for 25 airports. This will lead to a 3.5 percent share of the sector under the monetisation plan. The government is looking at a monetisation value of nearly Rs 21,000 crore in this sector.

Also Read: National Monetisation Pipeline: Here’s deep-dive into road and railways sector

Looking at the breakup of the Rs 21,000 figure, Rs 10,000 crore is from government stake sale in four JV airports—Delhi, Mumbai Bengaluru and Hyderabad. The remaining Rs 10,782 crore is for private players that the government is looking to get for operating, maintenance and development of 25 airports, which are currently under government control. This will lead to an overall 18 percent of Airports Authority of India (AAI) assets under the monetisation programme.

For  FY22, the government is looking to get private players for Bhubaneswar, Varanasi, Amritsar, Trichy, Indore and Raipur airports and for FY23 the government shall commence the bidding process for Calicut, Coimbatore, Nagpur, Patna, Ranchi, Madurai, Surat and Jodhpur airports.

Watch the accompanying video for more.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow