First the bad news …

1. From The Journal of Commerce (September 3, 2012) – “The G6 Alliance of European and Asian container carriers said it is temporarily suspending one of its Asia-Europe services because of ‘the forecast lack of improvements’ in the trade, in a move rival lines will likely follow in the coming weeks …

“Other carriers on the route are expected to suspend services going into the winter schedule in a bid to shore up freight rates and boost vessel capacity following a lackluster peak season. Maersk Line, the biggest carrier on the Asia-Europe trade, reportedly expects westbound traffic to decline 3 percent this year from 2011 levels.” –

2. From Shipping News (September 5, 2012) – “The global idle containership fleet has risen over the last two-week period to the end of August to 260 vessels to total 546,000 TEU. The idle containership fleet is anticipated to continue rising until the end of the year due to a number of carriers planning to remove significant capacity on Far East-Europe trade lanes over the winter season, starting from October.

“The idle fleet is forecast to swell to between 700,000 and 900,000 TEU by the end of the year, ‘with the severity dependent on the extent of the capacity cutbacks to be implemented by carriers in the coming months’, according to one report.” –

Then the stupid news …

1. From The Jamaica Observer (September 4, 2012) – “The window for Jamaica to take advantage of the expanded Panama Canal is closing fast. The waterway, which will allow cargo ships with three times the container capacity currently passing through the docks, should be finished in the first half of 2015. What’s more, earlier this month, a court cleared the way for a US $ 1-billion port facility in Costa Rica, while Cuba, not wanting to wait on political change, is embarking on a $ 600-million port in Mariel.

“‘When Costa Rica is finished it is going to be a threat to all of us in the Caribbean and Panama,’ said Carlos Urriola, the head of the Caribbean Shipping Association.” –

2. From Shipping News (September 5, 2012) – “The South Carolina legislature has awarded $ 300 million to pay for the dredging of Charleston Harbor to 50 feet to tap opportunities created by the expansion of the Panama Canal in 2014.” –

[Aren’t we hearing that the economies in the U.S., Europe and Asia are collapsing? What will those giant container ships be carrying, anyway? Air? Those giant container ships will actually be part of the 700,000 to 900,000 TEU mentioned in the report cited above.]