Did You Know That…

 

…Ships keep moving through Hormuz despite strike and suspension of IMO exit strategy.

• Discussions between the foreign ministries of Iran and Oman on Monday helped finalise the IMO plan before its abrupt suspension

• The IRGC continues to insist that the only legitimate passage through the strait is the northern route under its control

• At least four vessels reversed course after the IRGC Navy reiterated its position on the northern route

• Traffic through the Omani lane nevertheless continued on Thursday and Friday despite the attack on the Ever Lovely, Iran’s warning and the IMO’s pause on the evacuation plan.

Despite the IMO freezing its evacuation plan after Ever Lovely was struck, ships are still moving through both Hormuz routes as operators weigh conflicting signals from Iran and the risks of staying put.

…Liners savour third-largest rate spike in container industry history

• Multiple spot-rate indexes have risen to levels last seen in August-September 2024 during the Red Sea crisis

• SCFI assessed rates from Shanghai to US west coast at $6,067 per feu, to US east coast at $7,384 per feu, to North Europe at $6,683 per feu, and to the Med at $9,332 per feu

• In the past week, carriers have increased offered capacity to US west coast by 10.5%, to US east coast by 12.1%, and to North Europe by 11.9%, according to Xeneta.

No one predicted that liner operators would be raking in profits in 2026; there was supposed to be a downturn. But container shipping has been riding high, even before the official start of peak season.

…Mega-hub era wanes as carriers disperse global connectivity.

• Mega hub connectivity is falling as carriers shed excess capacity at Singapore, Port Klang, Tanjung Pelepas and major Chinese gateways

• Secondary relay ports are seeing connectivity surge, with Djibouti, Ennore, Haiphong and Khor Fakkan posting strong quarter-on-quarter gains

• Decentralisation is now structural, with SeaIntelligence identifying a locked-in redesign of global service networks rather than temporary crisis driven rerouting.

SeaIntelligence says Unctad’s latest container port index confirms a long-term pivot toward secondary gateways and diversified supply chain corridors.

…Maersk raises outlook significantly after strong months. On Monday evening, A.P. Møller-Maersk raised its outlook for 2026 in light of strong demand in the container market and higher spot rates. Maersk lifts profit forecast on robust Asia trades and surging freight rates

• World’s second-largest container line has significantly upgraded its 2026 financial guidance

• Stronger-than-expected demand in global container shipping sees Maersk also raise its forecast for global container volume growth. Maersk now expects underlying ebitda of $8bn to $10bn, up from $4.5bn to $7bn, reflecting an improved outlook for the remainder of the year.

…Shipping sustains pragmatic approach to Hormuz transits amid political uncertainty

• Traffic through Hormuz is growing again following recent US-Iran strikes, with shipowners relying on political guarantees, shifting security corridors and improvised convoys to move vessels through a still‑fragile chokepoint

• Iran and Oman pushing competing control plans for the strait, while US-Iran talks in Doha remain uncertain and fees proposed by Middle East Gulf states threaten to stall any long‑term agreement

• Shipping is adapting through temporary workarounds, including VLCC shuttle operations and dark transits.

Hormuz traffic surges as US-Iran talks are set to resume, but a long‑term plan is still elusive and shipping is enacting temporary workarounds not a strategic return.

…CMA CGM seals $1.4bn FedEx logistics deal as US expansion accelerates.

• CMA CGM subsidiary CEVA’s North American footprint will expand to 20,000 employees across 240 sites following the addition of 10,000 FedEx staff and 150 warehouses

• French line will become a preferred ocean carrier for FedEx under multi‑year ocean and air freight agreements rolling out through 2028

• Transaction expected to be closed before the end of 2026.

French carrier CMA CGM is set to become one of North America’s largest contract logistics operators after agreeing to buy FedEx Supply Chain, as it steps up its multibillion‑dollar US investment drive.

…Maersk and MSC halt operations at Venezuelan Port after earthquake. Both companies are closely monitoring the situation in northern Venezuela. However, it remains unclear when the port will be operational again due to earthquake damage.

…Europe’s airport queues are extremely long—and getting longer. The continent’s border-control system is out of control. THE EUROPEAN UNION frets a lot about whether it is competitive, but in one sector it leads the world: acronyms that infuriate foreigners. In recent months the EU’s Entry-Exit Scheme (EES) has caused conniptions at the continent’s airports. Exasperated visitors (mostly Americans and Britons, for whom travel to Europe is supposed to be a visa-free breeze) have posted videos on Instagram and TikTok of spaghetti-like queues at passport control. The EES began its rollout last October, three years behind schedule. It was supposed to be fully implemented by April. The system is meant to make it easier to track non-EU visitors to the Schengen visa-free travel area, replacing passport stamps with a smooth IT system. Travellers must register by getting their passport, face and fingerprints scanned at the border. Border guards are supposed to use these data to verify their identity on each subsequent trip. Listen to this story

THE EUROPEAN UNION frets a lot about whether it is competitive, but in one sector it leads the world: acronyms that infuriate foreigners. In recent months the EU’s Entry-Exit Scheme (EES) has caused conniptions at the continent’s airports. Exasperated visitors (mostly Americans and Britons, for whom travel to Europe is supposed to be a visa-free breeze) have posted videos on Instagram and TikTok of spaghetti-like queues at passport control. The EES began its rollout last October, three years behind schedule. It was supposed to be fully implemented by April. The system is meant to make it easier to track non-EU visitors to the Schengen visa-free travel area, replacing passport stamps with a smooth IT system. Travellers must register by getting their passport, face and fingerprints scanned at the border. Border guards are supposed to use these data to verify their identity on each subsequent trip. European officials reckon the scheme is working. In May the European Commission said it had stopped some 30,000 people from improperly entering Schengen, including nearly 7,000 who had stayed longer than allowed on previous visits.

…MSC’s megamax fleet expansion is reshaping global container shipping.

• MSC’s unprecedented orderbook is pushing megamax ships far beyond traditional Asia-Europe trades

• Ports worldwide face growing pressure to invest for a fundamental shift in vessel deployment patterns driven by MSC’s super-sized fleet

• MSC is reshaping future trade routes around emerging markets, especially India and West.

MSC’s unprecedented orderbook is turning megamax containerships from specialist assets into the backbone of a global network strategy, accelerating a shift that will reshape trade routes, port investment and competitive dynamics across container shipping.

… The global demand for chips used in data centres and advanced electronics helped drive China exports up by 19.4% in May, year on year.

…The boss of BYD, a Chinese maker of electric vehicles, said his company would probably become the world’s biggest carmaker within five years.

…Voters in Switzerland rejected a proposal to cap the country’s population at 10m. The current population is just over 9m, but it is growing at a faster rate than those of Switzerland’s neighbours.

…The European Parliament approved the trade deal with America that was agreed to in principle last year.

…The share price of SpaceX soared by 50% in the days following its initial public offering., lifting it to a market valuation of almost $2.7trn.

…Much of western Europe boiled under a heatwave that smashed many temperature records. France recorded its hottest day since records began in 1947 when the thermometer hit 44.3 degrees Celcius (111.7 degrees F)  in Pissos, south of Bordeaux.

…In China, Richard Liu, the boss of JS.com, predicted that robots will replace the e-commerce company’s 700,000 delivery workers “sooner than later”. Robots will eventually handle all deliveries, said Mr. Liu, and workers will need to be retrained to maintain and repair their automated colleagues.

…A law firm that uses AI instead of lawyers won a case in the English courts, in what is thought to be a legal first for AI anywhere in the world.

…Professional cyclists consume enormous amounts of calories during races. Yet, when their energy use is converted into the equivalent of petrol, they consume less than one litre per 100 kilometres.

 

 

Have a great weekend!

 

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