Greg Miller

Houthi attacks and Red Sea diversions will not spur inflation or a new supply chain crisis, claims consultancy Drewry.

The Russia-Ukraine war led to enduring changes in shipping routes. War in the Middle East looks likely to do the same.

Spot rates remain very high, but appear to have plateaued. The question ahead: Will they fall back after Chinese New Year?

The initial effect of Houthi attacks was on containerized consumer goods. The attacks are now snarling seaborne fuel flows.

Amid the focus on wars in Europe and the Middle East, North Korea’s threat to key exporting and shipbuilding nations grows.

Monthly canal transits are now much lower than they were in 2015, the year before the Neopanamax locks went into operation.

Container lines faced overcapacity and huge losses in 2024. Then the Houthis flipped the market in favor of container lines.

Container-ship diversions from the Red Sea will likely last for months. Are large-scale tanker diversions imminent?

Houthi attacks have been a plus for shipping rates. The latest to benefit: Owners of container vessels that can be rented to shipping lines.

The upsurge in rates due to ship diversions did not come soon enough to rescue container lines’ fourth-quarter results.

Red Sea escalation would juice tanker rates, but rates would fall if the conflict spilled into the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. imports kept chugging along, despite all the talk of supply chain problems due to Red Sea attacks and Panama’s drought.

The combination of Red Sea detours and Panama Canal restrictions is having a knock-on effect: higher Asia-West Coast rates.

Imports to Europe and the U.S. East Coast face heavy delays as Operation Prosperity Guardian fails to bring shipping back to the Red Sea.

Tanker stocks rose as expected in 2023, container shipping shares surprised to the upside, and dry bulk stocks lagged the pack.

Shipping stocks are under pressure as some ocean carriers show faith in military protection from Red Sea attacks.

Ocean shipping kept the world’s cargo flowing amid two wars and disruptions at both the Panama and Suez canals.

The key question for container shipping rates: How soon can Operation Prosperity Guardian woo traffic back to the Red Sea?

Container ships have forsaken the Red Sea route but many bulk commodity vessels continue to transit the danger zone.

A growing number of ship operators are refusing to transit the Red Sea and taking a very long detour around Africa instead.

Container-ship route diversions — first to avoid the Panama Canal, now to avoid Red Sea chaos — could help offset rate pressure from newbuilding deliveries.

Panama’s drought initially affected transits through the smaller locks. The pain has now spread to the larger Neopanamax locks.

Greg Miller of FreightWaves took a top prize at this year’s Seahorse Awards for his coverage of how geopolitics intersects with shipping.

As war rages in Europe and the Middle East, a new flashpoint in South America could pose more complications for shipping.

Next year, U.S. importers must navigate canal restrictions, diversions from the Red Sea, more canceled sailings and, possibly, a port strike.

Imports have held up surprisingly well this year, but peak season’s end and canal restrictions are finally curbing volumes.

U.S. crude exports have never been higher. Overseas buyers are incentivizing American producers to pump more “black gold.”

Commodity shipping has a well-deserved reputation for extreme volatility. The rise and expected fall in dry bulk is a case in point.

U.S. diesel exports to South America’s west coast are heavily exposed to Panama Canal delays. Tanker rates have skyrocketed.

As the Panama Canal scales back on reservation slots, more ships without reservations wait longer to get through.

MSC, the world’s largest shipping line, faces the largest-ever shipper claim for alleged damages suffered during the supply chain crisis.

There has been a surge of attacks and threats targeting Israel-linked ships, including one incident where the U.S. Navy came to the rescue.

Time is running out for container lines as contract rate renewal season nears and spot rates fail to recover.

Panama Canal restrictions force more ships to transit the Bab el-Mandeb Strait off Yemen, where they face a hijacking risk.

Terminal operator ICTSI has not given up its quest for tens of millions in damages from the West Coast longshore union.

The era of rapid Chinese growth and large-scale government intervention is over, says China Beige Book CEO Leland Miller.

Zim’s headline loss looks ugly, but most of the decline was non-cash and it still has ample reserves to weather the downcycle.

A fleet of container vessels is up for sale as a company backed by Greece’s Evangelos Marinakis switches its bets to LNG shipping.

U.S. agribulk exports to Asia are taking the longer route via the Suez Canal due to Panama transit restrictions.

Cargo volumes are holding up, but rising transport capacity is outpacing demand, pushing container shipping rates even lower.

Containerized imports have rebounded strongly in 2023, with October volumes up 33% from February’s low.

The union representing East and Gulf Coast dockworkers warned members to prepare for a possible strike starting Oct. 1, 2024.

“This is not a diet. This is a resetting of the baseline,” said Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc on his company’s job cuts.

The water crisis at the Panama Canal is getting worse and will force more ships to take much longer routes.

Profits being reported by container shipping lines are down from the stratosphere but many still surpass pre-COVID returns.

Now that port labor unrest is over, West Coast container terminals are starting to claw back some of their lost volumes.

Cosco earned more than $800 million in the third quarter, while one analyst expects Zim to lose more than $200 million.

A leading exec in liquefied gas shipping gives his take on war in the Middle East, market fundamentals and shipping stocks.

The volume of Russian crude exports is growing and the price is rising, spurring the U.S. and its partners to begin sanctions enforcement.

Peak season demand propelled imports higher in September, although softening spot rates point to a fourth-quarter slowdown.

Tanker giant Frontline is poised to dramatically expand its fleet, while Euronav is on a path to privatization.

Investors have been burned for years by dilutive share offerings by micro-cap shipowners. Backlash is building.

The Chapter 11 filing of the ILWU dockworkers union dates back to a dispute over two electrician jobs in Oregon a decade ago.

Just when it looked like West Coast port labor drama had dissipated, the ILWU has filed for bankruptcy protection.

A flood of tanks, military vehicles and weapons systems is flowing from the U.S. to Europe. Shipowner ARC plays a pivotal transport role.

Inflation and economic fallout from the war are curbing demand just as a tidal wave of new ship supply hits the water.

Diesel is an essential fuel for the global economy. The world’s second-largest seaborne supplier, Russia, just halted exports.

The recent rate rebound turned out to be fleeting. As rates deteriorate yet again, shipping lines face mounting losses.

The supply chain crisis is over, but exporters are still paying more — and facing more logistical challenges — than they did before the pandemic.

Shipowner Grimaldi says a Jeep Wrangler used to push non-operating automobiles onto the vessel sparked the deadly fire.

The plot thickens in the legal battle between Bed Bath & Beyond and container lines. More carriers are in the crosshairs.

Now that supply chains are back to normal, the typical effects of seasonality have returned, bringing U.S. imports up.

Fuel costs were overshadowed by skyrocketing freight rates amid the supply chain crisis. Now, fuel costs are much more important.

This was supposed to be a banner year for crude tankers, but output cuts and the Russian price cap are keeping rates under pressure.

Have shipping stocks been a good bet? Here’s a look at their performance year to date and versus pre-COVID.

Persistent congestion and higher delays at the Panama Canal could lead to lasting changes in global LPG shipping flows.

Asia-U.S. spot shipping rates have pulled back after a strong run-up, implying peak season may have passed its peak.

Average CEO compensation rose as ocean shipping company earnings increased, fueled in many cases by share-based compensation.

Panama’s drought poses a serious challenge to the country’s canal operations, but fallout to global trade remains limited.

Unprecedented supply-demand imbalances amid the pandemic led to historic dividend payouts by container shipping lines.

The global coal trade is thriving, with dry bulk ships busy carrying the loads. As the West consumes less coal, Asia buys even more.

Spot ocean shipping rates from Europe to the U.S. held up much longer than trans-Pacific rates. Now they’ve sunk to historic lows.

Zim lost $213 million in the second quarter. Will rising trans-Pacific spot rates help it reverse course in the third?

Price caps have been breached, discounts on Russian exports are dwindling, and more money is flowing to Russian coffers.

Containerized imports are rising seasonally, as expected. This year is on track to top pre-pandemic volumes by low single digits.

Investors in Danaos thought they were buying a container shipping stock. Now they’re invested in dry bulk, too.

After double-digit gains since June, trans-Pacific spot rates have just surpassed contract rates, according to Xeneta data.

Despite upgrading its full-year outlook, container shipping giant Maersk no longer sees a second-half demand rebound.

Asian demand for propane continues to build, as does US supply, equating to booming business for LPG tanker owners in the middle.

Shipping lines are seeing higher cargo volumes and successfully integrating newly built vessels into their fleets, says Textainer’s CEO.

“It is extremely difficult to announce a reasonable business forecast at this time,” said ONE, citing container shipping market uncertainties.

Because container liner profits plummeted off an extraordinarily high peak, some carriers are still posting hefty profits despite huge declines.

Despite ongoing controversy over shareholder treatment, analyst Michael Webber says shipping is doing a better job.

After rapidly expanding its fleet during the boom, ocean carrier Zim is backpedaling and shedding ships.

Container lines did not manage post-boom vessel capacity as well as expected. In the trans-Pacific, they may be belatedly getting the hang of it.

Expectations for peak season have waned, but container lines may have bounced off the bottom.

Spreads between high- and low-sulfur fuels are down to pandemic levels and LNG has become much more economical.

Shipowners have invested billions in the LNG fuel option in the belief that it will benefit regulatory compliance and the environment.

U.S. rail imports from Vancouver and Prince Rupert are imperiled again. ILWU Canada has rejected the proposed dockworkers contract.

Shipping stocks in sectors with high deliveries of new ships are doing better than those with low orderbooks.

Tanker shipping sanctions compliance is getting a lot more complicated as the price of Russian crude oil rises.

The extended strike in western Canada was beginning to affect U.S. supply chains. Its resolution limits the fallout.

Sulfur pollution addressed by IMO 2020 created a health risk, but that pollution had a cooling effect, which has now been reduced.

The agreement should keep tanker and bulker orders in check, while increasing the risk of a future carbon tax on container shippers.

June volumes of containerized imports were higher than normal and the National Retail Federation predicts more gains ahead.

U.S. imports via Canadian ports face rising fallout as the war of words escalates between dockworkers and employers.

New Jersey container imports are unscathed “so far” but the port’s automobile trade faces fallout from the ongoing fire.

Sluggish demand is capping shipping lines’ income. In response, at least one carrier is reportedly moving to limit losses on legacy charters.

Declining demand for Chinese exports and reduced stimulus options threaten bulk commodity import prospects.

The Wagner mutiny is drawing attention to what happens after the war in Ukraine ends. When it does, shipping will see major changes.