U.S. News (August 3)
“A surge in consumer demand and pandemic-related logjams holding up containers in key ports had boosted freight rates and profits in the shipping industry in recent quarters, yet the cost of living crisis has reversed that trend.” Shipping giant Maersk, which controls 17% of the container shipping market “expects global container demand to fall this year as sales of durable goods come to a ‘standstill.’” Inflation, “dented consumer demand” and the weaker economy “could lead to a normalization of the global shipping market towards the end of the year.”
Tags: Containers, Crisis, Demand, Durable goods, Freight rates. Profits, Inflation, Logjams, Maersk, Normalization, Pandemic, Ports, Shipping industry, Surge
Bloomberg (June 14)
“The shipping industry is struggling through its worst recession in half a century, and that icon of globalization — the mega-container ship — is a major part of the problem. With global growth and trade still sluggish, and the benefits of sailing and docking big boats diminishing with each new generation, ship owners are belatedly realizing that bigger isn’t better.”
Tags: Better, Bigger, Container ships, Diminishing returns, Globalization, Growth, Recession, Shipping industry, Sluggish, Trade
