Category Archives: Shipping

After a much challenging time, Indian exports are finally making a significant recovery. As per reports, exports in the nation are likely to close the first half of the present financial year at around $195 billion, which is a significant achievement. Union Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal believes that exports are on course to reach the $400-billion target this year and a series of measures announced in recent months will pave the way for stronger growth. In 2020, with the outbreak of the pandemic, several logistical challenges surfaced, putting businesses in a tough spot. With the onset of COVID restrictions, shortage of containers and higher shipping rates, the exporters of our country seemed to be in murky waters, as they sought for some immediate aid from the government.

The Kingdom of Bahrain launched the fastest regional multi-modal logistics hub in the Gulf with only two hours of turnaround time for all containers. This essentially means that shipments can now be delivered to their destination in half the time and at 40% of the cost. With the launch of “Bahrain Global Sea-Air Hub,” Bahrain capitalizes both on its strategic position midway between European and Asian markets as well as on its proximity to regional target markets by establishing the most efficient multimodal sea-air transhipment hub in the region with a global reach. The newly launched hub relies on streamlined clearance procedures, optimized logistics, and full digitization to achieve an end-to-end lead time of just under two hours for goods transiting from Bahrain International Airport to Khalifa bin Salman Port, and vice versa.

Shankar Shinde is elected the new Chairman – FFFAI at 58th AGM held in Mumbai on September 24 The Federation of Freight Forwarders’ Associations in India (FFFAI) in its 58th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held on September 24, 2021 elected new Office Bearers of the Executive Committee for the year 2021-23. Shankar Shinde the then Chairman-Elect for the year 2019-21, has taken over as Chairman, FFFAI for the ensuing two years’ tenure. He is also elected Managing Director on IFCBA (International Federation of Custom Brokers Association). The other elected Office Bearers are, Dushyant Mulani, Chairman-Elect. – Brihanmumbai Custom Brokers Association . Vice Chairmen- S Nataraja – Chennai Custom House Agents’ Association, Amit Kamat – Goa Custom House Agents’ Association, Rajesh Verma – Ludhiana Custom House Agents’ Association, Sudip Dey – Calcutta Custom House Agents’ Association, Shashidhar V. Hebbar – Bangalore Custom House Agents’ Association Ltd., Kartik Pancholi – Ahmedabad Custom Brokers Association, Vinod Sharma, Hon. Secretary – Pune Custom House Agents’ Association, Sudhir Agarwal, Hon. Treasurer. – Nagpur Custom House Agents’ Association.

The German container shipping company Hapag-Lloyd has announced the acquisition of a 30% stake in Container Terminal Wilhelmshaven (CTW) and 50% of the shares of Rail Terminal Wilhelmshaven (RTW) at the German container port JadeWeserPort. The Bremen-based terminal operator Eurogate continues to hold the remaining shares, while the parties have agreed to not disclose the purchase price. The contract closing is expected within a few months, while it is subject to approval by the antitrust authorities.

The CMA CGM Group, a world leader in shipping and logistics, announced today the launch of NETWORKING services, the first business matchmaking marketplace in the shipping and logistics industry. Based on the similarly named service launched in 2020 as part of the CMA CGM+ range, this unique and unrivalled digital platform puts the Group’s customers directly in touch with their business partner in a seamless and secure mann The new NETWORKING services marketplace enables the Group’s customers to expand their business worldwide, to create new business opportunities and to find the suppliers or customers that best fit their needs, all while saving on cost and time and reducing the hassle and risks associated with business development.

Allcargo Logistics Ltd is mulling a potential entry into container terminal operation business to explore opportunities with the container freight stations (CFS) and inland container depots (ICD) the firm runs across India, shared a top official. “Some of the strategic objectives that we could explore would be whether it would make sense to get into container terminal operations,” said Ravi Jakhar, Chief Strategy Officer, Allcargo Logistics. This, however, does not include greenfield port development as those are infrastructure projects. But if there happens to be any opportunities for container terminals, we could look at it, Jakhar said. “From a strategic point of view, container terminals could be a potential area of synergy with CFS/ICD business”, Jakhar explained. He, however, added that the firm “does not have active investment plans on the drawing board”.

Transworld Group, one of the leading Global Shipping & Logistics Conglomerate, has further strengthened its overall fleet by adding large size bulk carrier – TBC Praise (36,699 DWT) . With the latest addition, Transworld is making a strong presence in the bulk carrier business with the latest acquisition coming close on the heels of 2 acquisitions of Bulk carriers TBC Passion and TBC Prime, with all 3 acquisitions done in 2021. Ramesh S. Ramakrishnan, Chairman, Transworld Group highlighted that this new addition to the fleet will further enhance Transworld’s Global footprint of Ship Owning in the Dry Bulk/ Container segment and deployment, which is a result of strong fundamentals and confidence in the growth of Shipping and Logistics sector in the present and coming years.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) will sponsor a number of women from developing countries to follow a new maritime leadership programme, curated by Maritime SheEO , as part of the it’s ongoing work to support gender diversity in the maritime sector. In Maritime, as with other sectors, the higher you climb the fewer women leaders you see in leadership positions. You cannot be what you cannot see! We need more women leaders, more role models and more importantly – our industry needs more capable women in the Captain’s seat. Says Sanjam Sahi Gupta, Founder, Maritime SheEO, “with a strong belief that every woman in the workplace should have the opportunity to flourish and achieve her full potential in 2019 I embarked on this mission through Maritime SheEO to create an ecosystem that supports women to become the leaders they want to be and they deserve to be”. She further adds, “I am really very grateful to IMO for showing their confidence in Maritime SheEO through their support for this unique Maritime women’s empowerment initiative”.

UAE-based logistics major DP World is investing around INR 2,000 crore in a slew of projects in Tamil Nadu, including setting up of a new container terminal, cold storage and seafood processing zone among other units. Some of the other projects lined up include a free trade zone with an integrated rail siding, a minor port in the Eastern Coast of Tamil Nadu and inland container depots in Erode, Karur and Tirupur. “These projects may create employment for 4,500 people (1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect),” a government official said. DP World has signed a memorandum of understanding with the state government seeking facilitation support required for the projects.

The world’s third-largest container carrier said it’s capping spot rates for ocean freight for the next five months, yielding to pressure from some customers and regulators concerned that global trade disruptions have pushed the cost of shipping too high. “Although these market-driven rate increases are expected to continue in the coming months, the group has decided to put any further increases in spot freight rates on hold for all services operated under its brands,” CMA CGM SA said in a statement on its website. The decision, which will resonate throughout the industry, took effect Thursday and runs through Feb. 1. Based in Marseille, France, the company said it’s “prioritizing its long-term relationship with customers in the face of an unprecedented situation in the shipping industry.”