In accordance with the assessment of Drewry Supply Chain Advisors, the container rates this week continued their weekly decreasing tendency. As it is mentioned, their composite World Container Index decreased by 1% to $1,651 per 40-foot container.

Royal Wagenborg confirmed that the refloating operation for its vessel Thamesborg was successful, and the ship will be proceeding to exit the Arctic to a port of refuge. The vessel had been stranded for 33 days after grounding on September 6 in the Franklin Strait off Prince of Wales Island, Canada.

Canada's Transportation Safety Board is advising mariners to keep in mind the differences in stability between flatbottomed barges and seagoing hull shapes. A properly-loaded barge is highly stable at low angles of heel, but its righting moment tails off sooner and more abruptly than a ship's, leaving it vulnerable to capsizing once tipped - as experienced by the crew of the Arctic sealift ship Sivumut at Iqaluit, Nunavut two years ago. 

The key waterway connecting the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans reported strong increases in revenues and transit numbers.

Lashers in Europe’s largest port Rotterdam went on a 48-hour strike on Wednesday afternoon to demand higher wages.

Two major organizations in the maritime sector are now joining forces to advance the role of ports in shipping’s fuel transition.

Container operations at Europe’s largest port, Rotterdam, have come to a standstill as lashers began a 48-hour strike on Wednesday afternoon to demand higher wages, while harbour pilots’ protests in neighbouring Antwerp-Bruges continue to disrupt marine traffic.

Greece and Saudi Arabia are examining opportunities of cooperation for Saudi investment in Greece’s shipbuilding and defense industries.

The U.S. Trade Representative’s port fee program is due to go into effect in less than a week, and with no more guidance having been issued, speculation remains rampant on the full impact of the program. The industry trade group BIMCO issued its analysis, pointing to the greatest impact on bulkers and segments of the tanker market, which it expects will leave the U.S. trade, but overall, it expects that freight rates should not increase for U.S. importers and exporters at this juncture.