Three weeks after Trump told the shipping world to start its engines, he declared the Iran deal over. African ports that absorbed the overflow have spent the windfall on infrastructure, not celebrations
The wars in Ukraine and the Middle East are accelerating a historic redistribution of power, ensuring that the world emerging from these conflicts will look nothing like the one we know today
A car carrier unloads 469 vehicles at Lamu, a port that barely functioned a year ago. The Iran war has placed African ports at the centre of a reshuffled global trade map
Global dry bulk markets faced rising volatility in the week ending 6 March 2026, as fuel shortages, Middle East tensions, and shifting cargo flows reshaped freight dynamics for Ultramax and Handysize vessels
Freight markets turned sharply cautious in the week that closed on 27 February 2026, as escalating tensions and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz forced a reassessment of risk, routing and pricing across global dry bulk trades
The seas now belong to one titan. MSC has crossed the seven-million-TEU threshold—a scale of power no carrier has ever touched. This is not just dominance; it is the reshaping of global trade itself
The Kyaukphyu Deep-Sea Port, a key Belt and Road project, grants China direct Indian Ocean access beyond the Malacca Strait—promising strategic advantage yet entangled in Myanmar’s instability and Beijing’s far-reaching geopolitical ambitions
Container shipping rates have collapsed to December 2023 levels, erasing two years of crisis-driven gains as carriers face mounting overcapacity, tariff pressures, and a record orderbook threatening further market deterioration
Global shipping markets endured another week of volatility between September 20–27, as UNCTAD delivered sobering forecasts, Chinese shipyards defied US sanctions, and container rates plummeted ahead of Golden Week holidays
Technology, energy flows, and maritime trade are reshaping geopolitics. Discover how nations and businesses can adapt to shifting power dynamics in an increasingly connected and competitive world