THE Panama Canal has posted a 3.6 per cent increase in annual throughput year on year to 333.7 million Panama Canal Tons (PC/UMS), a figure which also surpassed the 2007 record of 312.9 million PC/UMS.

The Panama Canal ton, or PC/UMS, is a unique tonnage measurement based on ship capacity and applied to containerships, tankers and bulk carriers alike.



"This milestone attests to the reliable and continuous service offered by the canal," said recently appointed Panama Canal Authority Administrator and CEO Jorge Luis Quijano.



The top market segments during this fiscal year, ending October 1, were full containerships totalling 119.8 million tons, followed by dry bulk carriers (83.4 million tons) and tankers (51.6 million tons).

GLOBAL freight volumes continued to be weak owing to sluggish trades in Europe and the US, according to statistics released by the OECD's International Transport Forum (ITF).

Surveying trade till June in both the EU and the US, the ITF said volumes remain below the June 2008 peak before the global financial crisis. The two regions' total external trade by air (in tonnes) drew back to the levels in October 2011 and has lingered at negative one per cent since then.



In the US, the sea freight at the end of June 2012 was still six per cent below the pre-crisis peak four years ago, while sea trades in the 27 states of the European Union was one per cent below that pre-crisis level.



Overall trade by sea and by air in most European countries remained soft and below the pre-crisis levels, except for Germany and the Netherlands. At the end of June, Germany's total external trade by sea was 12 per cent above the pre-crisis level. For air freight, signs of significant slowdown were seen, as imports have dropped from 46 per cent to 19 per cent above the pre-crisis level between June 2011 and June 2012.



The report said the persistent euro crisis has reduced imports owing to deteriorating domestic demand. Taking Greece as an example, its imports for June 2012, measured in tonnes of goods moved, fell to 41 per cent below pre-crisis peaks for maritime transport and 50 per cent for air cargo.



In contrast, domestic demand in Asian economies has continued to grow. The US and EU exports to Asia by air rebounded in the end of June.



Sea exports from the EU to Asia reached a new high for both Europe and the States with 61 per cent and 25 per cent above June 2008 levels respectively. But EU and US imports from Asia by sea in the same period continue to be lower than pre-crisis levels.



Overall, the EU and US total trade with Asia has picked up to exceed the pre-crisis levels, except for a negative seven per cent for the EU trade by sea.

THE Prince Rupert Port Authority has seen a 17 per cent increase in container throughput at its Fairview Terminal in September 2012 compared to the same month last year at 52,994 TEU.

Year-to-date container volume at Prince Rupert was up 47 per cent year-on-year to 421,641 TEU.



Imports were up 20 per cent this September at 28,877 TEU, with imports so far this year up 45 per cent to 238,434 TEU, reports the Northern View.



Exports are up 13 per cent this September compared to last, but the number of loaded outbound boxes moving through Prince Rupert fell 14 per cent while the number of empty boxes rose 45 per cent in TEU terms.



For the January to September period, exports have risen by 50 per cent to 183,207 TEU, with loaded containers up 28 per cent and empties leaving Prince Rupert up 80 per cent.



Ridley Terminals' September tonnage was up 56 per cent at 848,150 tonnes, while its cargo volume year-to-date is up 20 per cent at 8.48 million tonnes.



So far this year, the Prince Rupert has handled a total of 16.1 million tonnes of cargo, an increase of 17 per cent.

DREWRY in London says that perishable refrigerated goods transported by sea freight have grown at an annual rate of 3.9 per cent, from 36.4 million tons in 2001 to 90.9 million tons in 2011.

Drewry Maritime Research predicts continued growth in perishable reefer cargo for 2012, and said "beyond that, population growth levels and GDP levels will see trade increase at an average rate of over four per cent a year to 2016," reports American Shipper.



According to Drewry' s annual Reefer Shipping Market Review and Forecast, the highest growth has been in the meat category in terms of tonnage, which rose from 21.4 million tons in 2001 to 35.9 million tons in 2011.



Worldwide trade of bananas and plantains has increased from 13.2 million tons in 2001 to 15.7 million tons. Following three straight years of falling volume, the banana trade rose by almost 10 per cent in 2011.



Analysts said the fleet of specialised breakbulk reefer ships has shrunk by 234 vessels with 81 million cubic feet of capacity in the last decade, with the majority of the trade now transported in reefer containers. During 2010 and 2011 a total of 77 vessels with 28.2 million cubic feet of capacity were scrapped.

MAERSK LINE has stopped all port calls to Iran, as the pressure of western sanctions on the Islamic republic mounts.

"This is based on balancing doing limited business in Iran against the risk of damaging business opportunities elsewhere, particularly the US," said a Maersk spokeswoman.



"Maersk Line will maintain a dormant business entity in Iran and will look to resume business should the sanctions regime be eased," she said.



The carrier said its main business with the country was transporting food and other goods to the people of Iran, and it regretted no longer being able to do so.

SALVAGE equipment worth NZ$20,000 (US$16,387) has been seized by pirates in the Malacca Straits while on a barge off Singapore bound for Tauranga, New Zealand where the wreck containership Rena lies aground on a reef.

The pirates are reported to have climbed on board the barge at night and broken into the containers as it sailed through the Strait of Malacca, reported the New Zealand Herald.



The salvage equipment was to be used on the 3,363-TEU Rena, which ran aground on a reef off the coast of Tauranga, New Zealand last October.



The barge is currently berthed in the Port of Tauranga as a dive station for the next phase of the salvage that involves cutting the bow down underwater, said the report, which added that such new stage of salvage is set to finish on time by the end of the year.

EVEN though the shipping industry usually enters its peak season during the third quarter of the year, it now finds itself struggling as the world economy continues to grow sluggishly and China growth slows, reports Xinhua.

Amid these circumstances, many companies are saying that they expect tough market conditions to persist for another few years.



Losses have been widespread in the industry with a first half loss of CNY4.87 billion (US$766 million) posted by state-owned China Cosco Holdings, its sixth straight quarterly loss.



State-owned China Shipping Container Lines posted losses of CNY1.28 billion during the first half, widening a CNY630.3 million loss in the same period last year.



Shipping companies blame industry-wide problems as well as surging oil prices, an oversupply of vessels, depressed freight rates and the world economy's lacklustre recovery.



Meanwhile, the peak season for the shipping industry third quarter when many western retailers place Christmas orders, is not expected to see much of an increase in cargo volumes this year, they said.



"We expect the global container demand to bottom out in the third quarter before improving somewhat in 2013," said Maersk Line CEO Soren Skou.



The world's largest carrier forecast that global demand for shipping containers will remain weak in the near future due to the slowdown in the world economy.



Compared with an average annual growth of 10 per cent during the past 45 years, "we expect global container demand growth to stay at five to eight per cent in the next few years," Mr Skou said.



At the same time, the companies laid up their ships. According to data from Alphaliner, the global volume of the idled containership fleet surged by three times from last year to 467,000 TEU at the end of July.



These steps have helped shipping lines restore profits, analysts and carriers said. Shipping lines still find that freight rates are too low to let them make profits and have announced plans to increase them further.



Maersk Line said it plans to raise them by between 10 and 20 per cent for its Asia-Europe route on November 1.



"We expect rates to hold up somewhat, but potentially with a sliding tendency if deployed capacity reveals itself as abundant," said Peter Sand, chief shipping analyst at the Baltic and International Maritime Council (BIMCO).

THE right to resell items made in China, after being legally imported and sold to Americans and then resold by them to others in the United States, is being challenged in the US Supreme Court on the basis of copyright infringement.

The case mostly affects personal electronic devices or books written by American writers, but printed and bound overseas, reports MarketWatch.



If an appellate plea is upheld, then a vast made-in-China products may become unattractive because their re-sale value would be destroyed unless permission was secured from copyright holders who also might also demand a share or the resale price.



The case concerns Thai-born, former Cornell University student Supap Kirtsaeng versus New Jersey textbook publisher John Wiley & Sons. At issue the century-old first-sale doctrine in copyright law that holds that intellectual property rights do not extend beyond the first sale of the textbooks he bought and paid for.



"Under the doctrine, which the Supreme Court has recognised since 1908, you can resell the item because the copyright holder only has control over the first sale. As it stands, While Apple Inc has the copyright on the iPhone and Mark Owen has it on the book, 'No Easy Day', one can still sell copies at will," said the report.



But the doctrine is being challenged for products made abroad, and if the court upholds an appellate court ruling, it would mean that the copyright holders of anything one owns still owns a portion of the resale value and can stop the sale.



"This has huge consumer impact on all consumer groups. It means that it's harder for consumers to buy used products and harder for them to sell them," said Jonathan Band, an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Centre, who filed a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of the American Library Association, the Association of College and Research Libraries and the Association for Research Libraries.



The case was sparked when Mr Kirtsaeng, who discovered that the college textbooks he required for his courses where available at much lower prices in Thailand and had his relatives buy and ship them to him at Cornell University in upstate New York.



Mr Kirtsaeng has since then got into business selling imported American textbooks on eBay, making US$1.2 million, according to court documents. The Wiley firm sued him for copyright infringement. Mr Kirtsaeng countered with the first-sale doctrine.

The new section of the eastern Trans-Asian Railway, from Yunnan province's Yuxi to Mengzi city, has entered the trial operation phase, Xinhua reports.

Yuxi-Mengzi Railway is one of the major projects in China's western region development plan and the key component of the Trans-Asian Railway, the integrated freight railway network across Europe and Asia.



Jointly owned by the Ministry of Railways and Yunnan provincial government The CNY4.5 billion (US$715.67 million) Yuxi-Mengzi Railway covers a distance of 141 kilometres and will initially set up 11 stations. Trains will be capable of speeds of 120 kilometres per hour.



Construction started in September 2005, but completion postponed to 2012 due to complicated geological conditions, said Xinhua.

The UK's GDP2 billion (US$3.2 billion) maritime services sector moved to build ties with China's shipping industry at the 3rd International Shipping Strategic Development Forum in Shanghai organised by the trade promotional body Maritime London.

With high profile support from the Lord Mayor of the City of London David Wooton who opened the forum, the event was attended by 450 and brought together some of the UK's leading maritime professionals and China's shipowners and charterers.



"The City of London remains the world's pre-eminent financial centre - and a central part of its competitive offer is the comprehensive range of maritime services we offer - services which make us the natural partner of choice for China, in all sectors and for all maritime business in particular," said Lord Mayor Wooton.



"Ours are great trading nations and great trading cities. The UK itself is the leading global centre for maritime services, and we are keen to co-operate with other important centres, such as Shanghai - not least because the focus of ship owning and operating has moved increasingly eastwards in recent years, not least due to China's economic growth - and the UK possesses the business services that help facilitate that."



Said Maritime London CEO Doug Barrow: "Maritime London enjoys a strong working relationship with both businesses and the Chinese authorities and we will continue to build on these relationships to ensure that the rapidly growing Chinese shipping sector continues to partner with the UK's maritime lawyers, shipbrokers, financiers, insurers, designers, surveyors, ship managers and educators."

WALLENIUS Wilhelmsen Logistics, a global provider of outbound logistics solutions, has acquired a 60 per cent stake in Abnormal Load Services (ALS) Holding BV, a specialist in out of gauge transport and supply chain solutions, for an undisclosed amount.

With this investment in Abnormal Load Services, WWL said in a statement that it will be able to offer an improved product to existing and new customers. ALS will become an integrated part of the WWL product offering, adopting the name Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics Abnormal Load Services (WWL ALS).



"The creation of WWL ALS closes an important network gap in terms of offering high-quality, consistent and competitive transport and distribution solutions for high and heavy wheeled and tracked equipment such as agricultural and construction machinery," the release said.



Erik Noeklebye, WWL head of Region Europe, explained: "Today OEM's are forced to look at the supply chain in a fragmented fashion due to a lack of integrated service providers. Ocean transport, land transport, technical services, plant handling etc., are often contracted separately, forcing the OEM to involve a lot of resources to manage a fragmented supply chain, driving costs up and quality down.



"Through WWL ALS, we will be able to offer these customers seamless finished vehicle logistics solutions with one customer interface and a global presence," he said.



The combined WWL ALS "possesses a strong knowledge of the global heavy lift market", and will be able to offer technical and supply chain expertise, a worldwide network of suppliers and agents, as well as land and ocean transport resources to customers across a range of industry sectors.

THE Technical University of Varna, Bulgaria, has officially opened its new state-of-the-art simulation training centre, to boost its reputation as a Black Sea maritime institute of higher learning.

The centre incorporates multiple VSTEP NAUTIS and RescueSim simulators and will be used for both maritime and incident management education and training.



The new simulation centre is said to be one of the most advanced hi-tech training and education hubs in the region. Simulation developer VSTEP was selected as simulator contractor for the centre and has delivered two NAUTIS Bridge Simulators, including Full Mission Bridge Simulator delivered in line with DNV Class A specifications, as well as five Engine Room Simulators and a full classroom with desktop Navigation Simulators for maritime training. A VSTEP RescueSim simulator was also delivered for incident management training.



Said vice rector Mitko Aleksandrov: "The user-friendly software tools provided by VSTEP will allow our students and teachers to not just become good sailors, but also ship designers, hydrodynamics engineers and hydrographers."



Both the maritime and incident management response simulators include innovative concepts not seen in the industry before. The NAUTIS simulators feature the IMO Type Approved Kelvin Hughes MantaDigital ECDIS and radar/ARPA systems, with the radar video delivered by the recently released NAUTIS Radar Interface Module. The NAUTIS bridge can also be turned into an azimuth tug simulator in less than an hour. The ship controls can be easily exchanged, allowing training on a wide variety of ships and propulsion types.

AEROPORTS de Paris (AdP), which owns and manages 14 airports around Paris, will have a new CEO when Pierre Graff retires on November 11 at the statutory retirement age of 65.

According to French media reports Air France Cargo (AFC) chief Florence Parly, aged 48, will succeed Mr Graff.



AFC's performance has steadily deteriorated over the past 18 months. It made an operating loss of EUR130 million (US$167.4 million) in the first half, after posting a EUR60 million deficit in 2011.



AFC has said reports of Ms Parly's departure were "rumours" and an AdP official said a successor had not yet been appointed and declined to comment on possible candidates, reports Lloyd's Loading List. A former French Secretary of State, Ms Parly was appointed director of AFC in September 2008.



The report said Air France Cargo had been suffering from heavy losses until Ms Parly returned the company to profit, a year ahead of expectations.



She oversaw the overhaul of the unit's economic model, reducing the number of freighter aircraft from 12 to five and focused on carrying more bellyhold.



AFC traffic in September, measured in freight tonne kilometres (FTK), declined 6.6 per cent year on year. January-September traffic showed a 6.5 per cent decrease as well.



The carrier has reduced its freighter fleet from five aircraft to four: two B747-400 ERFs and two B777Fs.

CHINESE telecom equipment makers Huawei and ZTE are facing demand that their products be blocked because they pose a potential security threat, reports Beijing-based Caixin, a financial news site.

The congressional House Intelligence Committee's plea concerns cyber espionage, including the possible disruption of US communications networks.



"The committee remains unsatisfied the level cooperation and candour provided by each company. Neither company was forthcoming about its relationships or regulatory interaction with Chinese authorities. Neither company provided specific details about the role of each company's Chinese Communist Party Committee," the report said.



"Huawei, in particular, failed to provide thorough information about its corporate structure, history, ownership, operations, financial arrangements, or management," said the committee report.



The intelligence committee called on the congressional Committee on Foreign Investment to block acquisitions, takeovers, or mergers involving Huawei and ZTE.



"US government systems, particularly sensitive systems, should not include Huawei or ZTE equipment, including component parts," the intelligence committee said.



Both companies denied they pose a threat.



Huawei, the largest manufacturer of telecom equipment in the world, was profiled Sunday by CBS' 60 Minutes show, alleging unsavoury links between the company and the Chinese government.

HOLLOW cricket bats and a Buddha statue were suspected items for drug smuggling on a UPS Air Cargo operated flight to Shenzhen from Mumbai airport, reports New Delhi's NDTV.

The Boeing 744 was forced to make an emergency landing after disobeying Indian customs orders to load the consignment and return to Mumbai airport. The law permits firing on planes that disobey orders to land.



Mumbai customs was told of the unusual objects an hour before the flight departed, which were accompanied by repeated attempts to the cargo owners, whose mobile phone was switched off.



The tip-off was thought to have leaked to the smugglers before the consignment was shipped onto the plane. Once officials forced a landing an hour after the flight had taken off, the items suspected of containing illegal drugs were taken for inspection at the courier terminal and found hollow and empty of substances.

RUSSIA's AirBridgeCargo Airlines (ABC) delivered in September a record 20 cars from its hub at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport to destinations in Europe, North America and Asia, using scheduled Boeing 747 freighter flights.

A statement from the parent company Volga-Dnepr Group said ABC was chosen to transport eight cars in September. Four vehicles were delivered to Chicago, two were carried to Munich and the others were bound for Frankfurt and Paris. The cars were moved following the end of the Moscow International Automobile Salon 2012, now a major annual event in the automotive industry calendar.



Vehicles shipped during the month included Lamborghini destine for a Milan autoshow, Lada Granta and Toyotas to Tokyo, Volkswagen Tiguan and Volkswagen Polo to Chicago, and a Rolls Royce to Frankfurt.



"We have carried cars ever since we first launched commercial flights in 2004 and this is now an extremely important and growing industry sector for AirBridgeCargo and our freight forwarding customers," said company president, Tatyana Arslanova.