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☆ Canadian West Coast ports strike is over, but it will take weeks for supply chain to recover
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Darryl Dyck | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThe strike at the Canada's West Coast ports is over, after both the labor union and port ownership accepted a deal presented by federal mediators. ILWU Canada union workers were expected to be back on the job for the 4:30 p.m. Pacific time shift on Thursday, but undoing the damage to the supply chain from close to two weeks of strike will take weeks. While the production ramp down at the ports was seen immediately, the congestion as a result of the 13-day strike will have a lasting effect on ports. The International Longshoremen and Warehouse Union of Canada begin its strike on July 1. The ports strike has already damaged the U.S. supply chain.

Persons: Darryl Dyck, Seamus O'Regan, Omar Alghabra, O'Regan, Prince Rupert, HLS, Eric Byer, Byer, Vancouver and Prince Rupert, Sara Elena, Willie Adams Organizations: Port Metro Vancouver, Bloomberg, Getty, Twitter, Canadian Labor, Warehouse Union of Canada, British Columbia Maritime Employers Association, Vancouver, US Inland Port, U.S ., Carriers, American Association of Railroads, National Association of Chemical Distributors, CNBC, Port, U.S, Products, Canada, Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Railway Association of Canada, MSC Brunella, ILWU U.S, West Coast, Logistics, Customs Locations: Vancouver , British Columbia, Canada, Coast, U.S, British, Vancouver, U.S . West Coast, Asia, Port of Vancouver, West Coast, Africa, United States

☆ Shelved port deal will test Temasek’s private push
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SINGAPORE, July 13 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Temasek is having a bad weather week. The Singaporean investor’s wholly owned port operator PSA International is shelving plans to sell its 20% stake in CK Hutchison’s (0001.HK) port business, per Bloomberg. PSA was seeking $4 billion for its stake, a touch less than what it paid. This week, Temasek itself reported a 5.2% drop in the net value of its portfolio to $285 billion in the 12 months to the end of March, as public markets remain weak. The world’s 10th-largest sovereign investor has 53% of its portfolio parked in unlisted assets, double the level a decade ago.

Persons: CK Hutchison’s, Li Ka, China's Cosco, Breakingviews, Daga, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Temasek, CK, Bloomberg, Twitter, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, HK, Hong Kong, Singapore, China

☆ West Coast port labor issues continue as some Los Angeles-bound rail shipments get paused
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Aerial view of containers and cargo ships at the Port of Los Angeles on Jan. 19, 2022 in San Pedro, California. Union Pacific is no longer accepting exports or empty containers at its Denver rail terminal destined for the Port of Los Angeles, a proactive move that reflects the supply chain issues that have arisen due to ongoing West Coast port labor issues. That is critical for food and agriculture shipments, where products can spoil — the U.S. agriculture industry uses the West Coast predominantly for its goods. The Port of Los Angeles is the nation's busiest port, processing $440 billion in cargo value per year. Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary BNSF and Union Pacific are the railroads servicing the West Coast ports.

Persons: Paul Brashier Organizations: Port, San Pedro , California ., San Pedro , California . Union Pacific, CNBC, Ocean, CMA, Pacific, Union Pacific, Berkshire Hathaway, BNSF, ITS Logistics, Pacific Maritime Association, Oakland, Truckers, Marine Services, Maersk Locations: Port of Los Angeles, San Pedro , California, San Pedro , California . Union, Denver, West Coast, Los Angeles, East Coast, Long, U.S, Seattle, OOCL, COSCO Shipping, Sealand, Evergreen

☆ West Coast port labor issues persist from Los Angeles to Seattle, with supply chain frustration mounting
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

A container ship is shown at the Port of Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California, November 22, 2021. Another Los Angeles Port terminal, Pacific Container Terminal (owned by SSA) announced Monday morning to truckers they would be closing the dayside shift on Tuesday. watch nowThe Port of Los Angeles, the nation's busiest port, processes $440 billion in cargo value per year. That market share has declined with more trade moving to the East Coast over the past year, at least partially due to labor issues on the West Coast that had supply chain managers worried about reliability of service. Recently, as the labor negotiations on the West Coast were said to have made progress, more trade started coming back.

Persons: Mike Blake, Paul Brashier, Brashier, ILWU Organizations: Port, Oakland, Logistics, CNBC, Marine Services, CMA, Maersk, Evergreen, ITS Logistics, Warehouse Union, Fenix Marine, Los Angeles Port, Container, SSA, Pacific Maritime Association Locations: Port of Los Angeles, Los Angeles , California, West, Los Angeles, Seattle, OOCL, COSCO Shipping, Sealand, West Coast, Port, East Coast, China, of Los Angeles, East, Long, Oakland

☆ China, U.S. spar at WTO meeting over disputes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

China's ambassador to the WTO Li Chenggang spoke at a meeting on trade disputes shortly after the United States lodged an appeal against a series of WTO rulings involving China, Turkey, Norway and Switzerland which found that U.S. metal tariffs breached global rules. Washington, which has long criticized the WTO dispute system for overreach and is leading discussions on reforming it, has criticized both rulings. The United States said it regretted the metal tariffs dispute with China was even on the agenda at the meeting and accused Beijing of imposing "illegal unilateral retaliatory measures" on U.S. exports. "A WTO that serves to shield China's non-market policies and practices is not in anyone's interest," said Deputy United States Trade Representative Maria Pagan, according to a copy of her speech. In an interview with Reuters on Thursday, Pagan played down the significance of more vocal criticism of Washington by China at WTO meetings.

☆ China's navy is showing off a huge new ship designed to carry other warships around
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Liu Zhen | South China Morning Post | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Yinmahu is a semi-submersible heavy-lift ship that could ferry equipment and damaged ships. Chinese state TV recently showed the ship doing various maneuvres but didn't reveal its specifications. Footage showed the Yinmahu's departure, submerging, ship loading, lifting and transporting. The Chinese navy's first heavy-lift vessel, the Donghaidao (hull number 868) is known to have entered service in 2015. The semi-submersible heavy-lift ship can carry vessels over 100,000 tonnes.

☆ Meet the harbor pilots who make $434,000 a year, face high fatality rates, and are responsible for guiding hulking cargo ships into ports
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Harbor pilots are the highest paid city employees, but face a one in 20 chance of dying on the job. Harbor pilots are some of the highest-paid municipal employees and represent a crucial part of a shipment's journey. "I've been chased up the ladder by the boat," Craig Flinn, another harbor pilot, tells Mims. A harbor pilot's job is complete once the ship is safely tucked away in its berth. Ultimately, harbor pilots represent a little known, but crucial part of the supply-chain.

☆ 'Never been so cheap': Fund manager explains why he loves shipping stocks right now
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

There are a host of reasons to consider investing in shipping companies, according to Pure Value Metrics' Richard-Mark Dodds, who said many of the stocks had attractive entry points. It's in contrast to the bumper year of 2007, Dodds said, when ship owners mistakenly expanded their shipping fleets instead. Buy-rated shipping stocks CNBC Pro screened for stocks in the shipping sector that could offer opportunities to investors. Shipping fleet 'becoming more valuable' Meanwhile, Dodds pointed toward another trend that could boost earnings: a reluctance by shipping owners to buy new vessels over environmental concerns. "The [existing] shipping fleet is becoming more valuable as time goes by because fewer ships are being built."

French container line CMA CGM sees the ownership of cargo terminals at U.S. ports as the next step in its bid to extend its shipping business into greater inland logistics. “Port terminals are an essential piece of the supply-chain efficiency, being at the crossroads of sea and land operations,” said Christine Cabau Woehrel, CMA CGM Group’s executive vice president of operations and assets. CMA CGM earned $17.9 billion in net profits in 2021 and its earnings in the first three quarters of this year reached more than $20.4 billion. The purchases come as CMA CGM is spending billions to buy logistics operations and more recently launch an airfreight service. China’s Cosco Shipping Ports has expanded its terminal operations around the world in concert with expansion by state-owned Cosco Shipping Lines.

☆ China shipyards feast on record LNG tanker orders as South Korea builders are full up
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Chen Aizhu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Chinese shipyards this year won 45 LNG tanker orders worth an estimated $9.8 billion, about five times their 2021 order values, according to shipping data provider Clarksons Research. By late November, Chinese yards had grown their LNG order books to 66 from 21, giving them 21% of global orders worth around $60 billion. Still, Chinese yards received 19 foreign orders for LNG tankers this year and that number is likely to grow. "Chinese yards have become more attractive because of the South Korean backlog, as well as rising costs," said ICIS analyst Songer. Chinese yards' relationship with GTT also helps, he said.

☆ Manufacturing orders from China down 40% in unrelenting demand collapse
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

U.S. manufacturing orders in China are down 40 percent, according to the latest CNBC Supply Chain Heat Map data. HLS expects most carriers to extend their West Coast rates until December 14, holding at $1,300-$1,400 per forty-foot equivalent containers (FEU). The 2M Alliance of Maersk and MSC has suspended almost half of its U.S. West Coast services for December. is also impacting Vietnam, which has been booming as a manufacturing hub as more trade moved away from China. Canceled ocean sailings bound for Vietnam are up 50% for December.

☆ Nexperia and Elmos cases show how the US-China chip war is spilling over to Europe
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Michelle Toh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Last week, the new owner of Britain’s biggest chipmaker was ordered to unwind its takeover, just days after another chip factory sale was blocked in Germany. “These decisions mark a shift towards tougher stances regarding Chinese investment in critical industries in Europe,” said Xiaomeng Lu, director of geo‑technology at Eurasia Group. A worker in a clean room for silicon semiconductor wafer manufacturing at the Newport Wafer Fab, owned by Nexperia, in Newport, Wales on Aug. 18. A company sign of Elmos Semiconductor, seen on Nov. 9 in the German city of Dortmund. Both Britain and Germany have recently added rules that expand government oversight over such decisions, making outcomes harder to predict.

☆ What Cramer is watching Tuesday — Nasdaq tough year, seasonal oil strength, P&G looking good
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Jim Cramer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Citi lowers DVN price target by $2 pe share to $78; keeps buy rating. Piper Sandler cuts Club holding Amazon (AMZN) price target to $119 per share from $125. Honeywell (HON), also a Club stock, is an underappreciated tech franchise, JPMorgan says. Zoom Video (ZM) catches multiple price target cuts on Wall Street. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

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London/Berlin CNN Business —The German government has blocked the sale of one of its semiconductor factories to a Chinese-owned tech company because of security concerns. Silex announced in December that it had signed an agreement with Elmos to buy the factory for €85 million ($85.4 million). Addressing the blocked chip deal, he stressed that “Germany is and will remain an open investment location” but that it was not “naive”. China’s chips under threatThe visit came just a month after the United States introduced stringent controls on chip exports to China, a move designed to protect its national security and bolster its domestic semiconductor industry. In early October, the Biden administration banned Chinese firms from buying advanced chips and chip-making equipment without a license.

☆ First Russia, now China? Europe doesn’t appear ready to ‘decouple’ from Beijing just yet
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Marie Brockling | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

Scholz was the first leader of a Group of 7 nations to visit China since the start of the pandemic, which was first detected there in 2019. China’s relations with Europe have deteriorated amid tensions over Taiwan, human rights issues and Beijing’s tacit support for Russia in its war on Ukraine. China has welcomed Scholz’s visit, saying it would “contribute to world peace, stability and growth.” But it received considerable pushback in Europe. Fears over Chinese interferenceScholz’s one-day visit to Beijing comes amid heightened fears in Europe over Chinese interference abroad. Wang suggested Europe could have the “best of both worlds” by playing a mediating role between Beijing and Washington.

BEIJING, Nov 4 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and a delegation of business leaders landed in Beijing on Friday morning, kicking off the first visit by a leader of a G7 nation to China in three years. China's strict zero-COVID policy and growing tensions with the West have made it unfeasible for leaders of major western powers to visit China, while Chinese President Xi Jinping has only just resumed foreign trips. Amid historic inflation and looming recession in Germany, Scholz will be looking to emphasise the need for continued cooperation with China, analysts say. In the run-up to the visit, there had been criticism of the visit within the EU and the German government coalition, mainly from the Green Party and the Liberals. Scholz has changed his tune even faster, but he does not have as solid of a domestic political standing as Merkel," said Wang.

☆ China says U.S. has 'no right' to interfere in Hamburg port deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, Nov 3 (Reuters) - The U.S has "no right" to interfere in Chinese cooperation with Germany, China's foreign ministry said Thursday, after Washington cautioned against Beijing getting a controlling stake in Hamburg's port terminal. U.S. interference is symptomatic of its practice of coercive diplomacy, foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters at a daily briefing in Beijing. Chinese shipping giant Cosco made a bid last year to take a 35% stake in one of logistics firm HHLA's (HHFGn.DE) three terminals in Germany's largest port, but Germany's coalition was divided over the deal. Last week the German cabinet approved a 24.9% stake investment by Cosco in what an economy ministry source described as an "emergency solution" to approve the deal but mitigate the impact. Reporting by Eduardo Baptista, Writing by Martin Quin Pollard; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky and Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The visit — the first by a G7 leader to China in roughly three years — comes as Germany slides towards recession. A spokesperson for Hamburger Hafen und Logistik (HHLA), the company operating the port terminal, told CNN Business on Thursday that it was still negotiating the deal with Cosco. “The restrictions are suffocating economic growth and heavily impact China’s attractiveness as a destination for foreign direct investment,” he told CNN Business. The ministry did not respond to a request for comment from CNN Business. He predicted that “the large majority will stay committed to the Chinese market and is expecting to expand their business.”Companies appear to be toeing that line.

The top diplomats of the G7 rich democracies will join sessions in the western German city of Muenster focusing on Ukraine, China and the Indo-Pacific as well as Iran and Africa, among others. "G7 partners will now together kick off winter aid for Ukraine," German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said at the opening of the event. The joint winter aid will be coordinated by G7 partners, she noted. Japan and Germany have agreed to work towards a military logistics pact, a Japanese government official said on Thursday after a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 meeting. The G7 session was being hosted by Germany as holder of the group's rotating presidency.

☆ U.S. cautioned Germany against a Chinese controlling stake in Hamburg port
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Humeyra Pamuk | Lewis Jackson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Cargo ship 'Cosco Shipping Gemini' of Chinese shipping company 'Cosco' is loaded at the container terminal 'Tollerort' in the port in Hamburg, Germany, October 25, 2022. REUTERS/Fabian BimmerMUNSTER, Germany, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The United States cautioned Germany against allowing China to obtain a controlling stake in a Hamburg port terminal, a senior U.S. State Department official said on Wednesday, in a deal that has been seen as a gauge of how far Germany is willing to toughen its stance on its top trading partner. By pushing the stake under 25%, the deal no longer officially requires Cabinet approval, which would have been hard to muster from the Greens and liberal-run ministries. The document points to "considerable risks that arise when elements of the European transport infrastructure are influenced and controlled by China - while China itself does not allow Germany to participate in Chinese ports." Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk in Munster, Germany; writing by Daphne Psaledakis in Washington; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. 'strongly suggested' there be no controlling interest by China in Hamburg port terminal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Humeyra Pamuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Cargo ship 'Cosco Shipping Gemini' of Chinese shipping company 'Cosco' is loaded at the container terminal 'Tollerort' in the port in Hamburg, Germany, October 25, 2022. REUTERS/Fabian BimmerMUNSTER, Germany, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The United States “strongly suggested” that there be no controlling interest by China in a Hamburg port terminal, a senior U.S. State Department official said, adding that the final deal was adjusted in the end with a smaller share for Beijing. “The embassy was very clear that we strongly suggested that there’d be no controlling interest by China, and as you see when they adjusted the deal, there isn’t," a second senior State Department official said. The document points to "considerable risks that arise when elements of the European transport infrastructure are influenced and controlled by China - while China itself does not allow Germany to participate in Chinese ports." Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk in Munster, Germany Writing by Daphne Psaledakis in Washington; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

China became Germany's single biggest trade partner in 2016. A recent survey by the Ifo think-tank found that nearly half of German industrial firms now rely on significant inputs from China. But Scholz's trip comes at a time of growing concern in the West - particularly in Germany's top security ally, the United States - about China's trade practices, human rights record and territorial ambitions. FDP General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai called the decision "naive" and criticized the timing of Scholz's trip to China as "deeply unfortunate". But the German chancellor declined Macron's offer, the sources said.

☆ COSCO Shipping says to buy $2.7 bln port assets from parent, in $2.9 bln ship building deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 31 (Reuters) - COSCO Shipping Holdings Co Ltd said on Monday it has agreed to buy port assets from its parent for an aggregate 19.7 billion yuan ($2.7 billion) as it aims to build a global digital supply chain for its customers. The Chinese shipping group said it would buy 14.9% of Shanghai International Port (Group) (600018.SS) from its indirect controlling parent China COSCO Shipping Corp Ltd for 18.9 billion yuan, and a 3.2% stake in Guangzhou Port (601228.SS) for 778.7 million yuan. COSCO Shipping Holdings (601919.SS) also said it had entered into shipping contracts with China COSCO Shipping's Dalian COSCO KHI Ship Engineering to build five vessels for a total of $1.2 billion. Its unit Orient Overseas (International) Ltd (0316.HK) has entered into ship building contracts with Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering to build seven vessels for a total $1.7 billion. read more($1 = 7.2499 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Donny Kwok; Editing by Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Germany allows China's Cosco to take 24.9% stake in largest port -sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Oct 26 (Reuters) - The German cabinet approved on Wednesday an investment by China's Cosco for a 24.9% stake in one of logistics firm HHLA's (HHFGn.DE) three terminals in Germany's largest port in Hamburg, government sources told Reuters. This is less than the initially planned 35% stake that the Chinese shipping giant had aimed for and comes a week before Chancellor Olaf Scholz is due to travel to China. The compromise was negotiated after significant political resistance against the deal. Economy minister Robert Habeck was among the politicians that said that Germany should avoid Chinese investment in critical infrastructure if possible. Reporting by Andreas Rinke, Writing by Rachel More, editing by Kirsti Knolle and Maria SheahanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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