Decks and Deals Weekly #35
Between 8 and 14 March 2026, the tanker market set confirmed all-time rate records, Greek-owned ships took direct hits in two separate war zones, and the IEA launched its largest-ever emergency oil release
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Maritime Industry
The Hormuz courier: how one tanker’s audacity defines Greek shipping dominance
In a move of calculated audacity, Greek shipowner George Prokopiou sent five tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. This high-stakes operation reveals the very DNA of Greek shipping dominance
Decks and Deals Weekly #34
The week of March 1–7, 2026, handed global shipping its most disruptive seven days in decades: the Strait of Hormuz closed, tanker rates shattered records, and insurers quietly finished what the missiles started
Decks and Deals Weekly #33
From February 22 to 28, 2026, the global shipping market absorbed three simultaneous shocks: a US-Israeli strike on Iran closed Hormuz, Panama ejected Hutchison, and container rates logged their seventh straight weekly decline
Middle East conflict disrupts global shipping
Developments in the Middle East test global maritime trade routes, as rising geopolitical tension increases costs, alters shipping patterns, and places critical energy corridors under renewed pressure without any formal blockad
America’s Maritime Action Plan: Strategic vision or high-seas bluff?
Washington has unveiled the Maritime Action Plan to reclaim control of global shipping. The strategy is bold, the framing is national security—and the industrial base it relies on barely exists
Decks and Deals Weekly #32
During the week of 15–21 February 2026, global shipping was reshaped by Hapag-Lloyd’s $4.2bn ZIM bid, Hormuz tensions, surging tanker rates, container overcapacity, Ukrainian port strikes, and bold Greek newbuilding orders
The invisible landlords: How container leasing became a geopolitical weapon
Half the containers on a Maersk ship do not belong to Maersk. They belong to financiers who rarely visit a port—and whose decisions now ripple across trade wars, capital markets, and Washington’s response to Beijing
Decks and Deals Weekly #31
Between 8–14 February 2026, the global shipping industry showcased a stark dichotomy: a record-breaking surge in newbuild orders, primarily in tankers, confronted the grim reality of looming overcapacity and falling freight rates
Decks and Deals Weekly #30
From 31 January to 7 February 2026, global shipping markets confronted structural distortions: collapsing shadow fleets, resilient mid-size tankers, aggressive Chinese-led newbuilding orders, and a widening gap between macro narratives and physical trade reality