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On our forum: The indispensable role of watchkeeping
By Michael Grey* “She’s not answering the helm!” It was a call to chill the heart of any watchkeeping officer, at least in the days
Dramatic surge of blank sailings between Asia and North America West Coast
According to a new report from Sea-Intelligence, container shipping lines have dramatically increased blank sailings on Transpacific routes as a result of the escalating trade
Chinese shipping lines and government attack USTR’s revised fee proposal
China’s biggest container carrier, Cosco Shipping Lines, today struck out at the revised plan by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to charge steep fees
Canadian Great Lakes carriers exempted from USTR levies on China-built vessels
In announcing watered down measures from a February proposal for port fees on China-built vessels in order to revive American shipbuilding, the U.S. Trade Representative
World Shipping Council urges constructive solutions following USTR port fee announcement
The World Shipping Council (WSC) today voiced serious concerns regarding the port fee regime announced by the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), cautioning that the measures
Sharp deterioration of global trade outlook amid Trump tariff warfare
The volume of world merchandise trade is expected to decline by 0.2% in 2025 under current conditions, nearly three percentage points lower than what would
Bipartite agreement at ILO to increase seafarer wages
Following two days of negotiations during its 2025 session at the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva, the Subcommittee on Wages of Seafarers of the
Incidents in Singapore Straits spur rise in global piracy
The ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has revealed a rise in global piracy and armed robbery incidents in the first quarter of 2025 – driven
Hydrogen import corridor between Oman, the Netherlands and Germany
A groundbreaking Joint Development Agreement (JDA) has been signed to establish the world’s first liquid hydrogen import corridor, connecting the Sultanate of Oman, the Netherlands,
ILO delivers on key worker rights for seafarers
The fifth meeting of the International Labour Organization’s Special Tripartite Committee (STC) on the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) concluded last week with some hard-fought achievements
Our Forum
On our Forum: The awesome challenge of improving life at sea
By Michael Grey* The old ideas are always the best, it is said, and if you are in the mood for cliches, you probably
On our Forum: Navigating in the new world of many nightmares
By Michael Grey* Decades ago – with the country suffering a government-appointed “wage freeze” and half the workforce out on strike – there was a
On our Forum: Solving the dilemma of shore-side post demands
By Michael Grey* It may offer less in the way of adventure, while an enthusiasm for foreign travel is universal these days, but
On our Forum: Measuring the local impact of giant cruise ships disgorging many people
By Michael Grey* As England battled Saharan temperatures, the depredations of climate activists and queues of multitudes trying to escape by air and sea, I
On our FORUM: Safety at stake on the world’s oceans
By Michael Grey* It’s those darned “stakeholders” who are the trouble once again. It is one of those words which was unknown in an earlier
On our FORUM: The index of happiness afloat
By Michael Grey* It was the annual “Day of the Seafarer” last week, not that anyone outside the maritime world actually noticed, although some
On our FORUM: The complex and fascinating world of modern weather routing: A deep dive into StormGeo’s advanced weather routing services
Do you know the name of the first navigator who used “weather routing” on his voyage from Europe to faraway lands and back? It wasn’t
On our FORUM: A mounting dilemma: burning boxes on the world’s containerships
*By Michael Grey There has been no end of sincere concern expressed about the frequency of fires inside containers, which are still running at
On Our FORUM: Uncontrollable monsters on the high seas
By Michael Grey* “She’s not answering her helm, Pilot!” It is not what anyone on the bridge of any ship wants to hear from the
On our Forum: The ‘disgraceful’ HR and PR behaviour of P&O Ferries
By Michael Grey* “In the shipping industry,” an old Greek shipowner once said to me, “we operate not with the help of the government, but
On our Forum: A new course for the Arctic after Russian invasion of Ukraine
By Evan T. Bloom* Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has had tremendous impact on international relations globally. While the Arctic has generally been immune from external political pressures,
On our Forum: Memories of Odessa… as Russian attack nears
By Michael Grey “They are lovely people who are going through hell”. It was a surveyor from DNV, who we happened to meet at Odessa
On our Forum: It’s time for an Arctic Council 2.0
By Alice Rogoff* For eight years since anonymous “little green men” from Russia invaded Crimea, the Arctic Council has continued to operate under the
On our Forum: Beware of risks for ships carrying EV vehicles…
By Michael Grey Here is a useful motoring tip that you probably will not discover in your service manual, should your new, all-electric vehicle inadvertently
On our Forum: Questions aplenty about ship fuel problems and ‘green’ solutions
By Michael Grey* You would be, to say the least, extremely angry, if your car came to a grinding halt and the nice person
On our Forum: New Year thoughts on supporting seafarers and… handling fanatics
By Michael Grey* It’s New Year’s Eve, when people of kindly disposition wish each other the hope that the coming twelve months might be happy,
On our Forum: Crew needs come last in revolutionary new ship shapes
By Michael Grey* In the compromise that dictates the design of a ship, you don’t have to be cynical to observe that the needs of
On our Forum: Will there be any sea left?
By Michael Grey* As the governmental delegates to Cop26, safely delivered home after their Scottish excursion, start to work out how they can deliver their
On our Forum: The real cause of the supply chain quagmires…
By Michael Grey* It is funny how different items of news mesh with each other. Cop 26 is over, thank goodness and the thousands of
On our Forum: Shipmasters deserve greatest respect for difficult decisions made in stormy conditions
By Michael Grey* In this world where virtue-signalling competes with the need to blame everyone, maybe we should not be surprised at the growing enthusiasm
On our Forum
The shipping industry needs to set ambitious targets to help prevent global climate catastrophe, the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) cautions in a new position