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Industrial metals have fallen into two very distinct camps over the course of 2019. In the one corner is the ferrous complex. The Shanghai Futures Exchange’s (ShFE) steel rebar and hot-rolled coil contracts are both showing year-to-date gains of over 21%. In the other corner are the base metals traded on the London Metal Exchange (LME). Copper, the metal with an honorary degree in economics, is now trading flat relative to the start of January. So too are other core LME contracts such as aluminium and zinc. Nickel is the ...

Saudi Arabia will try to maintain oil supplies to its major customers by drawing down crude stored at tank farms in the kingdom and in its global network while repairing and replacing installations damaged in the recent attacks. Saudi Arabia reported domestic crude stocks of 180 million barrels at the end of July, government data supplied to the Joint Organisations Data Initiative showed. Saudi Aramco, the national oil company, also maintains a few tens of millions of barrels of forward storage near its customers in leased tank farms in the ...

If anything could distract Asia’s top powers from sparring over disputed territory and crimes committed during World War II, it’s the need for cheap oil. Asia accounts for more than 70 percent of Saudi Arabia’s crude exports, with the four biggest economies — China, Japan, India and South Korea — leading the pack, according to consultancy Wood Mackenzie. That leaves them particularly vulnerable to rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East that are now causing global crude prices to soar. With the U.S. already blaming Iran for a devastating drone ...

Oil prices edged higher in Asian trade on Thursday after days of turbulence, with markets soothed by Saudi Arabia’s pledge to restore full production by end-September at facilities knocked out in drone and missile attacks last weekend. Brent crude futures rose 24 cents to $63.84 a barrel by 0634 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 21 cents to $58.32 a barrel. The steadying of nerves came after Saudi Arabia set out the timeline to resume full operations, and also said it had managed to restore supplies ...

Combined run rates at China’s independent refineries in eastern Shandong province was more or less stable at around 60.4% in August, compared with 60.2% in July, according to S&P Global Platts calculations based on data from JLC. JLC is a Beijing-based information provider, formerly known as JYD. On a year-on-year basis, it was two percentage points higher from August 2018 of 58%. The slightly higher run rates came mainly from improving refining margins, despite Super Typhoon Lekima halting operations at more than 10 refineries in mid-August. Refining margins for processing ...

Asian refining profit margins for gasoil have surged to their highest levels for the month of September in six years, buoyed by expectations for higher demand as the shipping industry looks ahead to switching to cleaner marine fuels next year. New regulations from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) will force shippers to reduce the sulphur content in fuels used in their vessels starting from Jan. 1, 2020, and one way to do that is to switch to low-sulphur gasoil. Refining profit margins, also known as cracks, for gasoil with a ...

A positive start in Europe nudged the main world share indexes and bond yields higher on Thursday, after the U.S. Federal Reserve’s second interest rate cut of the year while Japan and others kept their limited remaining powder dry. The effects of the trade war has seen central banks around the world swing back into support mode this year, but the Fed’s central message on Wednesday was that it wasn’t expecting a major capitulation of the economy. The Bank of Japan and Switzerland’s central bank then both kept their deeply ...

The Federal Reserve voted to cut interest rates by a quarter-percentage point for the second time in as many months to cushion the economy against a global slowdown amplified by the U.S.-China trade conflict. While the central bankers left the door open to additional cuts, they were split over Wednesday’s decision and the outlook for further reductions. Seven of 10 officials voted in favor lowering the short-term benchmark to a range between 1.75% and 2%. As in July, two reserve bank presidents dissented from the decision in favor of holding ...

Confidence among companies in Asia lifted slightly in the September quarter from 10-year lows, but most firms do not plan on hiring or expect business to pick up as they see a risk of a global recession looming, a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey found. The Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asian Business Sentiment Index tracking firms’ six-month outlook rose five points to 58 in the survey. A reading above 50 means optimistic respondents outnumbered pessimists. The latest showing, though, means the index has not risen above the mid-60s for a year and is one ...

Daily rates on main tanker routes as compiled by shipbroker Charles R. Weber.

What Happened On 14 Sep 19, the Saudi Aramaco owned Abqaiq oil processing facility was attacked by a coordinated attack utilising multiple drones. Preliminary reports have indicated that the attack resulted in 19 points of impact. Iranian president Hassan Rouhani told a news conference that the attack was conducted by Yemen in legitimate defence and in reciprocity for the Saudi attacks. This follows on from initial reports that Yemen’s Houthi rebels have stated that they take responsibility for the attack. However, Saudi sources have suggested that assessments of the attack ...

Thetius announced the beta launch of a new business intelligence platform for maritime innovation. Thetius Insight allows users to access up to date information on startups and innovation projects throughout the maritime sector and offers a new way for established shipping companies to understand and engage with innovative businesses. “This project was born out of frustration,” says Nick Chubb, Founder at Thetius. “There are so many amazing projects going on in our industry but they are often hidden away. Through Thetius Insight we can highlight projects at every stage of ...

Corvus Energy is pleased to announce that Seaspan Ferries has selected Corvus Energy to supply a 2034 kWh Orca Energy system for each of its newbuild LNG-battery hybrid ferries currently under construction. Seaspan will also operate the new roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) ferries on its coastal routes in British Columbia. The Corvus batteries will contribute to significant reduction in emissions, fewer running hours on the engines, and faster response to load variations. “Seaspan Ferries is striving to gain maximum efficiencies with our new fleet which are larger than our existing vessels. The ...

Russian Maritime Register of Shipping (RS) has carried out the approval in principle (AiP) of the new LNG containment systems, designed by Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT) for Arc7 ice class ships. The new containment systems Mark III Flex and NO 96 L03+ by GTT are based upon proven LNG containment systems designs, enabling, in addition, to reduce the in-service boil-off rate. RS and GTT analyzed the containment systems in terms of safety of operation aboard a ship navigating in ice-covered waters. Under the AiP procedure, RS and GTT considered containment ...

In 2019, World EDCIS Day will provide insights into ‘what is beyond ECDIS’ with topics around the challenges and solutions of Digital Transformation in the Maritime Industry. On 25 September 2019, the one-day World ECDIS Day conference will be held in Hamburg for the third time. The biannual event, first held in 2015, was initially developed as an industry initiative to provide a forum for stakeholders to have their most pressing questions around the development and implementation of ECDIS answered by industry experts. In 2019, with many vessels have successfully ...