Container carriers have shifted to a much greater proportion of owned tonnage in the newbuild ordering spree in the past few years but whether that will reduce costs versus chartered-in tonnage remains open to question.
Shipping under attack in the Red Sea, a new container shipping alliance, Chinese yards dominate newbuilding market, and much more in the latest episode of Maritime in Minutes.
The impact of the Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea have sent shockwaves throughout global shipping and these were highlighted by Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) at US Congress.
Houthi militia are increasingly targeting US and UK-owned vessels transiting the Red Sea with at least three ships from the two countries hit by missiles in the last two weeks, while several others have come under fire.
Middle East hostilities and decisions by many owners to re-route ships around the Cape of Good Hope is shoring up markets and keeping freight rates above expectations, which does not equate to good news for ship recycling markets.