Mexico News

Port of Indiana-Mt. Vernon Makes ‘Next Generation’ Terminal Upgrades

A  recently completed a $2 million capital improvement project aims to attract more cargo to one of the nation’s largest inland ports.Situated 153 miles from the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, the Port of Indiana-Mount Vernon connects the Ohio River Valley region’s agriculture, coal and manufacturing industries to the rest of the world via year-round access to the Gulf of Mexico and Great Lakes through the inland waterways system.Each year, more than 3,600 barges…

Pemex Trading Arm Mulls Canceling May-June Cargos

The trading arm of Mexican state oil company Pemex is mulling options to slash the number of fuel cargoes the country imports in May and June as demand plummets because of the coronavirus, three sources close to the talks told Reuters.Pemex last week declared force majeure over fuel supplies from its trading arm PMI Comercio Internacional after a bottleneck of more than 60 vessels built up outside Mexican ports, waiting to discharge.But PMI still has not declared force majeure…

Tanker Bottleneck Grows at Mexico's Ports

More than 20 vessels loaded with fuel have waited a week or more to discharge gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas at Mexico's ports, according to Refinitiv Eikon data, as demand craters due to coronavirus-related lockdowns.Mexico imports most of its fuel and has very limited storage capacity. State oil company Pemex and about a dozen independent importers typically discharge at least two gasoline cargoes per day, mostly coming from the United States.In January…

OPEC+ Outlines Record Oil Production Cut; Mexico Balks

OPEC, Russia and other allies outlined plans on Thursday to cut their oil output by more than a fifth and said they expected the United States and other producers to join in their effort to prop up prices hammered by the coronavirus crisis.But the group, known as OPEC+, said a final agreement was dependent on Mexico signing up to the pact after it balked at the production cuts it was asked to make. Discussions among top global energy ministers will resume on Friday.The planned output curbs by OPEC+ amount to 10 million barrels per day (bpd) or 10% of global supplies…

Port Manatee Opens Transfer Facility

A new throughput-maximizing facility opened in early April at Port Manatee is helping speed shipments of fresh produce to consumers of Florida and beyond.Port Manatee’s newly unveiled transfer facility, with room for 120 trailers, optimizes capabilities for expediting movement of cargo by freeing up near-dock yard space for stacking as many as 300 containers at a time.The 3.6-acre facility was completed in three months at a port investment of $916,093 while supporting 10 construction jobs.Shippers of produce through Port Manatee include Del Monte Fresh Produce Co.…

Coronavirus Upends Global Food Supply Chains

In the fertile Satara district in western India, farmers are putting their cattle on an unorthodox diet: Some feed iceberg lettuce to buffalo. Others feed strawberries to cows.It’s not a treat. They can either feed their crops to animals or let them spoil. And other farmers are doing just that - dumping truck loads of fresh grapes to rot on compost heaps.The farmers cannot get their produce to consumers because of lockdowns that aim to stop the spread of coronavirus. In India…

Intermodal Supply Chains Strain Under the Weight of Coronovirus Lockdowns

LONDON/MADRID/LOS ANGELES, March 23 - Freight carriers are struggling to deliver goods by land, sea or air as the coronavirus pandemic forces Western governments to impose lockdowns, threatening supplies of vital products including medicines into the most affected areas, such as Italy.While China's draconian steps to stop the spread of the virus are now allowing its economy slowly to come back online, supply chains are backing up in other parts of the world.Problems ranging from…

Western Supply Chains Buckle as Coronavirus Lockdowns Spread

Freight carriers are struggling to deliver goods by land, sea or air as the coronavirus pandemic forces Western governments to impose lockdowns, threatening supplies of vital products including medicines into the most affected areas, such as Italy.While China's draconian steps to stop the spread of the virus are now allowing its economy slowly to come back online, supply chains are backing up in other parts of the world.Problems ranging from finding enough truck drivers to restrictions on seafarers and a lack of air freight are hitting the smooth flow of goods…

Coronavirus-hit Princess Cruises Suspends Operations

Princess Cruises, the operator of two coronavirus-stricken ships, said on Thursday it would suspend global operations of its 18 cruise ships for two months, sending shares of its parent company Carnival Corp down 22% in premarket trading.The Grand Princess was denied entry to San Francisco Bay last Wednesday en route back from Hawaii as authorities learned some passengers and crew had developed flu-like symptoms, and that patrons from an earlier cruise to Mexico aboard the same ship had tested positive for coronavirus.The Diamond Princess cruise ship…

Grand Princess Docks in Oakland

Weary passengers aboard a cruise ship idled at sea for days by a coronavirus outbreak erupted in cheers on Monday as the vessel sailed into San Francisco Bay en route to the Port of Oakland and the next, unexpected phase of their voyage - two weeks of quarantine.The 2,400 passengers, who have been largely confined to their staterooms since Thursday, were to begin disembarking on Monday for transport to quarantine stations or hospitals, depending on whether they are well or need immediate medical attention.Except for those with acute illness…

Global Container Demand to Grow by 1-3% in 2020

For 2020, global container demand is projected to grow by 1-3%, as per forecast by A.P. Moller - Maersk.The continued weak global sentiment above all in the manufacturing sector reduces the likelihood of a material growth pick-up in 2020, although sentiment brightened a bit at the end of 2019, and some improvement can be expected on the back of stabilizing inventory dynamics, said the shipping giant.Aside from the cyclical slowing of the global economy, substantial risk to global container demand comes from the effectiveness of fiscal and monetary policy in major economies…

Shipping Industry Faces $370 mln Hit From New Panama Canal Charge

A new "freshwater" charge that came in this month to help the Panama Canal cope with climate change will cost the shipping industry up to $370 million a year, marking another blow for maritime companies already hit by fallout from the coronavirus.The Panama Canal, one of world's busiest shipping routes, which handled nearly 14,000 transits last year, said last month it would introduce a charge from Feb. 15 of $10,000 for any vessel more than 125 feet long.The canal, which relies on water from nearby Gatun Lake, has been hit by drought which affects water levels in the chokepoint.

Anatomy of a Marine Casualty Investigation

Blank Rome’s maritime attorneys have represented clients in some of the largest maritime casualties in the last 20 years, including the Staten Island Ferry allision with a maintenance pier in New York, the blow out and eventual loss of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, the sinking of the El Faro during Hurricane Joaquin, and the collision between the Navy Destroyer USS John S. McCain and the tanker ALNIC MC in the Singapore Strait. These casualties have resulted in the catastrophic loss of life…

Mammoet Completes Mexican Terminal Expansion

Mammoet, a Dutch company specialized in engineered heavy lifting and transport of over-sized and heavy objects, said that its  team has successfully completed the second phase of the relocation of several shipping container cranes for Hutchison Ports ICAVE as part of a planned port expansion in Veracruz, Mexico.Mammoet used 56 axle lines of SPMT to transport two ship-to-shore (STS) cranes and ten rubber-tired gantry cranes (RTGs). The completion of the crane relocations has increased the port’s capacity to more than 95 million tons.

Maersk Names Jany CFO

A.P. Moller - Maersk has appointed Patrick Jany as its new chief financial officer, effective May 1, 2020.Jany, a German citizen, joins the world's largest shipping company as CFO and a member of the executive board after more than two decades with Swiss chemicals company Clariant, where he's been CFO since 2006. Prior to his role as CFO, he held several leadership positions within finance, general management and corporate development in Clariant in Germany, Mexico, Singapore, Indonesia and Spain.“I am pleased to welcome Patrick Jany to A.

US Trade Deficit Narrows for First Time in Six Years

The U.S. trade deficit fell for the first time in six years in 2019 as the White House’s trade war with China curbed the import bill, keeping the economy on a moderate growth path despite a slowdown in consumer spending and weak business investment.The report from the Commerce Department on Wednesday also showed the Trump administration’s “America First” agenda decreased the flow of goods last year, with exports posting their first decline since 2016. President Donald Trump, who has dubbed himself “the tariff man…

Anatomy of a Marine Casualty Investigation

Blank Rome’s maritime attorneys have represented clients in some of the largest maritime casualties in the last 20 years, including the Staten Island Ferry allision with a maintenance pier in New York, the blow out and eventual loss of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, the sinking of the El Faro during Hurricane Joaquin, and the collision between the Navy Destroyer USS John S. McCain and the tanker ALNIC MC in the Singapore Strait. These casualties have resulted in the catastrophic loss of life…

CaribX Ups Stake in Cape Licence Off Honduras

The Central American and Caribbean specialist exploration company CaribX said that it is increasing its share of the Main Cape Operating contract in Honduras.Following government approval CaribX will hold a 55% interest in the highly prospective licence area.CEO Rory Scott Russell said: "We are pleased to have closed this latest round of funding and delighted to have such a highly qualified and experienced group of explorers and entrepreneurs joining the company. Attracting the team behind Sierra and the giant Zama discovery demonstrates the enormous potential offshore Honduras…

Houston Ship Channel Shut on Tuesday Morning for Salvage

The Houston Ship Channel was shut on Tuesday morning to raise a fishing vessel that sank in mid-January near the waterway's entrance in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the Houston ship pilots association.The ship channel, a 53-mile (85 km) waterway connecting the busiest U.S. petrochemical port with the Gulf of Mexico, is scheduled to reopen at 10 a.m. local time (1600 GMT) on Tuesday, according to Houston Pilots, the ship pilots association.Two people aboard the 81-foot (25…

US Raises Tariffs on Derivative Steel, Aluminum from Some Countries

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation increasing tariffs on derivative steel products by an additional 25 percent and boosting duties on derivative aluminum products by an additional 10 percent.Trump said Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico and South Korea are exempt from the additional tariffs on derivative steel products, and Argentina, Australia, Canada and Mexico are exempt from the added duties on derivative aluminum articles.Trump has imposed tariffs on imported steel and aluminum to help boost U.S.

SAAM Acquires Intertug

Chilean logistics company SAAM has struck a deal to buy Intertug Investment Holding, a towage services company with operations in Colombia, Mexico and Honduras.SAAM will spend $54.5 million for 70% of Intertug, based on an enterprise value of $98 million, and carry out the acquisition through a capital increase and a share purchase, it said in a stock market exchange announcement.Intertug's 25-vessel fleet logs more than 18,000 maneuvers a year, generating around US$44 million in towage service revenue annually.The partnership with Intertug allows us to enter Colombia…

Trump to Discuss Traded Deal with EU's Von der Leyen

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he was going to discuss a trade deal with the European Union (EU) in a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.Speaking ahead of a meeting with von der Leyen on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Trump said: "Hopefully, we'll get something done."He earlier told delegates that trade deals struck this month with China and Mexico represented a model for the 21st Century.(Editing by Alexander Smith)

Pelosi to Speak as U.S. Closes in on USMCA Deal

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will hold a news conference on Tuesday to discuss the U.S. Mexico Canada (USMCA) trade deal as U.S. and Canadian officials prepared to fly to Mexico City to work on final changes to the agreement."We're close. We're not quite finished yet, we're within range," Pelosi told a forum of chief executives on Monday evening.Her office did not elaborate on any announcement but she will be accompanied at the news conference by Representative Richard Neal…

Maersk India Trade Report Q3 2019

India’s import and export container trade in Q3 2019 (July-September) remained flat as compared to global growth of 1.5%. The slowdown is aligned closely with the weaker domestic demand, as well as a reflection of the broad-based cyclical weakening of the economic environment in all the main global economies. The negative effects from escalating trade restrictions also weighed on trade growth in the quarter. The trade restrictions have reduced bilateral trade between the United States of America and China…

BIMCO: No Change in US Imports of Steel Goods From Brazil

0.0%, no change in US imports of steel goods from Brazil despite quotaIn the first ten months of the year, the US imported 3.9 million tonnes of steel goods from Brazil, the same as was imported in the first ten months of 2017, despite the US putting in place quotas which was supposed to lower imports from the country.Brazil is the largest seaborne exporter of the tariffed steel goods to the USA, twice as large as South Korea, in second place.Brazil approaching its annual quotaIn May 2018…

SAAM Towage to Enter El Salvador Market

Latest move to Enter El Salvador with Energía del Pacífico will Reinforce SAAM Towage's Presence in Central America.The Managing Director of SAAM Towage, Felipe Rioja, celebrated the company’s upcoming launch in the new market: El Salvador. “We will provide services for the Energía del Pacífico (EDP) project at the Port of Acajutla, which reinforces our presence in Central America and our commitment to the region,” he commented.The long-term agreement with EDP calls for allocating three tugs, two of which are new, to power plant operations.