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The good news for Australia is that it can expect a flood of cash from resource exports this fiscal year because of rising exports and relatively strong prices for iron ore, coal and liquefied natural gas (LNG). The bad news is this windfall is unlikely to be sustained for long, and export earnings are likely to fall in four of the five years after the current 2018/19 fiscal year. The risk for Australia is that its politicians will be tempted to lock in permanent tax cuts and spending measures based ...

On Friday, March 22, the Expanded Panama Canal commemorated its 1,000th day in operation, marking an important milestone for the waterway that continues to redefine world trade routes and exceed expectations. “During these 1,000 days, the Panama Canal’s workforce has not only met the challenge of successfully managing the Neopanamax Locks, but also exceeded the projections we had for this period of operations, thanks to their efficiency and productivity,” said the Panama Canal Administrator Jorge L. Quijano. Since the inauguration of the Expanded Canal in June 2016, the waterway has ...

The Shipyards Association of India (SAI) has dragged the Centre and the RBI to the Supreme Court, seeking “special provisions” to resolve the acute financial stress facing the shipbuilding industry. In a petition filed before the apex court, the 20-member group — that includes L&T Shipbuilding Ltd and Reliance Naval and Engineering Ltd — has sought the court’s direction to quash and set aside circulars issued by the Finance Ministry in 2017 and the RBI in 2018 on the resolution of stressed assets outside the mechanism of the Insolvency and ...

A slowing domestic economy will likely lead to a moderate uptick in container imports through 2019, following a robust year that was marked by record-high cargo growth amid a trade dispute with China, experts said Wednesday at the Port of Long Beach’s 15th annual Pulse of the Ports Peak Season Forecast. About 500 people gathered at the Renaissance Long Beach Hotel for the event, which brought together a panel of experts from every segment of the shipping and goods movement industry to discuss the cargo outlook for 2019, the latest ...

The Irish shipping industry has seen a marked increase in business as companies bypass British ports amid Brexit fears. Irish ports have been forced to adapt quickly and increase capacity for direct sailings to continental EU ports as manufacturers increasingly see Irish ports like Dublin and Rosslare as an alternative to the landbridge. The landbridge is the UK transit route linking Ireland and mainland Europe, and an estimated 150,000 Irish trucks and three million tonnes of goods travel through the UK for export to the EU each year. Currently, two-and-a-half ...

One of the world’s most advanced container terminals, Victoria International Container Terminal (VICT) in Melbourne, Australia sets the standard for modern automated terminal design. Every single aspect of operations at this pioneering terminal relies on the OneTerminal integrated automation system. “We felt that Kalmar and Navis together offered the most mature solution in the automation space, and this was important for us because we had a very narrow time window to deliver an operational terminal,” says Anders Dømmestrup, CEO, VICT. Hugely complex projects like this can often be plagued by ...

Trading companies linked to the Chinese government purchased roughly 1.6 million mt of soybeans from the US Gulf on Thursday evening, according to market sources. US-China trade talks resumed on Thursday Asia time, led by US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in Beijing. The sources said that on Thursday evening some 1.6 million mt of US soybeans were traded from US Gulf origin, with roughly 28 Panamax vessels set for delivery between July and August. Chinese traders said PNW cargoes were also traded, adding up ...

Commodities had their best quarter in almost three years, driven by supply concerns and optimism over demand. Investors, though, might not want to get too cocky. Now, the outlook for demand is running into troubling signs in the U.S. and China, the two biggest consumers. In early March, China cut its goal for economic expansion, while a report Thursday showed U.S. growth cooled more than forecast. “It’s hard to make the case that, overall, commodities can stay in this uptrend,” said Rob Haworth, senior investment strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth ...

Brent crude will likely stay in a holding pattern and average close to $67/b in 2019, but the balance remains fragile as OPEC’s production cuts and sanctions on Iran and Venezuela offset new US supply later this year, according to top banks and oil brokers surveyed by S&P Global Platts. The consensus forecast for front-month spot Brent has fallen from $75.50/b in the survey in the previous quarter on a strong production outlook for shale and the oil majors. The trend is seen continuing into 2020, with the panel predicting ...

U.S. President Donald Trump and the Saudi government have closely aligned views on most issues but they disagree significantly on the desirable level for oil prices, which could become a source of volatility in 2019/2020. In keeping with his iconoclastic approach to governing, Trump has kept up a public commentary on oil prices and the role of Saudi-led OPEC in messages on Twitter as well as television interviews. So far in 2018/19, the president’s interventions have revealed his preference for a benchmark oil price below $70 per barrel (using front-month ...

Omani Energy Minister Mohammed bin Hamad al-Rumhy said he expected global oil prices to stay in a range between $65 and $75 a barrel until the end of the year, the state-run Oman News Agency (ONA) reported on Saturday. He was also quoted as saying Oman remained committed to the OPEC+ agreement until the end of 2019. Under the accord reached in December 2018, members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) along with Russia and other non-OPEC producers — an alliance known as OPEC+ — agreed to ...

The European natual gas market looks set to remain well supplied through the second quarter of 2019, with only limited upside risk to the current bearish price trend. For power, a mixed hydro picture in southern Europe going into Q2 is balanced by solid nuclear availability, solar additions and improved interconnection. And while Brexit is set to offer near-term carbon price volatility, underlying fundamentals indicate weakening EU Allowance prices due to coal-to-gas switching. RECORD HIGH GAS STOCKS Gas storage stocks are at record highs following one of the mildest winters ...

The first official gauge of China’s manufacturing sector rebounded in March, signaling a stabilization in the economy as policy stimulus takes hold. The manufacturing purchasing managers index rose to 50.5 from 49.2 last month, the biggest jump on month since 2012. The non-manufacturing PMI — a gauge of services and construction — stood at 54.8 versus 54.3 in February. Readings above 50 signal expansion. Key Insights Leading sub-gauges improved, with new orders and new export orders both jumping to the highest levels in six months.“Monetary policy measures have been effective, ...

Marseille Fos Port Authority and Quechen Silicon Chemical have signed a construction agreement for the Chinese company’s €105m project to build a plant on a 12-hectare site in the Fos industrial zone, adding to speculation about China’s growing influence in Europe. Quechen is the world’s third biggest producer of silicon used in making ‘green’ vehicle tyres. Due on stream in 2021, the largest Chinese-owned factory in France will generate 130 direct jobs and annual cargo throughput of 400,000t. Quechen’s CEO Que Weidong confirmed the agreement at a ceremony on 25 ...

Libya’s El Sharara oil field produced around 280,000 barrels on Thursday, a field engineer told Reuters. The field reopened this month after it was shut down in December following its seizure by state guards and tribesmen. Source: Reuters (Reporting by Ayman al-Warfalli; Writing by Hesham Hajali; Editing by Jan Harvey)