India's August rice exports drop 29% on weak African demand: Govt

MUMBAI: India's rice exports in August fell 29% year-on-year to 644,249 tonnes, Government data showed, due to weak demand from African countries for non-basmati rice, among other factors. "Demand from west African countries is weak for non-basmati rice. They have bought a lot from China and don't need to buy huge volumes now," said Nitin Gupta, 

Vice President of Olam India's rice business. India is the world's biggest rice exporter but its shipments have plunged 27% in the first five months of the 2019/20 financial year, starting on April 1, to 3.8 million tonnes, the data showed.

Iran, the biggest buyer of India's basmati rice, has nearly stopped purchases in the last few weeks as it harvests its own crop, said an exporter based in New Delhi. 

"Iran could resume buying early next year after harvesting the local crop," the exporter said.

Rice supplies from India's summer-sown crop are expected to improve from next month and this could moderate local prices and make exports competitive, Gupta said.

Non-basmati rice exports could fall 40% in 2019/20 from a year ago unless the Government provided some incentive for exports, said B V Krishna Rao, President of the Rice Exporters Association (REA).

"The industry badly needs Government support to accelerate exports," Rao said.

India exported 11.95 million tonnes of rice in 2018/19 through March 31, down 7.2% from the previous 12 months, even though it had provided incentives for exports of non-basmati rice for four months of the year.

US outlines 'Phase 1' trade deal with China, suspends October tariff hike

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump recently outlined the first phase of a deal to end a trade war with China and suspended a threatened tariff hike, but officials on both sides said much more work needed to be done before an accord could be agreed.

The emerging deal, covering agriculture, currency and some aspects of intellectual property protections, would represent the biggest step by the two countries in 15 months to end a tariff tit-for-tat that has whipsawed financial markets and slowed global growth. But the recent announcement did not include many details and Trump said it could take up to five weeks to get a pact written.

He acknowledged the agreement could fall apart during that period, though he expressed confidence that it would not.

"I think we have a fundamental understanding on the key issues. We've gone through a significant amount of paper, but there is more work to do," US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said as the two sides gathered with Trump at the White House.

With Chinese Vice Premier Liu He sitting across a desk from him in the Oval Office after two days of talks between negotiators, the President told reporters that the two sides were very close to ending their trade dispute.

JSW Infrastructuare to buy 14 more Mini-Bulk Carriers for $126 million

MUMBAI: JSW Infrastructure Ltd will buy as much as 14 more Mini-Bulk carriers that can move seamlessly along sea and river carrying cargo between its Jaigarh and Dharamtar ports for the captive use of the group’s steel mill and the upcoming cement plant at Dolvi located along the Amba river in Maharashtra.

 

The steel-maker previously ordered 18 such ships, each with a capacity to carry 8,000 tonnes at Chinese, Indian and Bangladeshi yards. Out of this, two vessels built at Bangladesh’s Western Marine Shipyard Ltd were delivered to JSW.

Cochin Shipyard Ltd is constructing four Mini-Bulk carriers for Utkarsh Advisory Services Private Limited, part of JSW group. The balance 12 ships are under construction at a Chinese yard.

 

“We would be ordering another 14 ships of 6,000-tonne capacity each, most likely from China and a few of them would be built at Cochin Shipyard,” Pranab Jha, Vice President, Shipping, JSW Steel Ltd, said recently. 

 

At about $9 million per vessel, the total acquisition cost for the 14 ships would be about $126 million.

 

JSW is looking to tap India’s Coastal Shipping and Inland Waterways in a big way to ferry cargo and cut logistics costs. The seaport at Jaigarh in Ratnagiri district and the riverine facility at Dharamtar in Raigad district are both run by JSW Infrastructure, a unit of Sajjan Jindal-led O P Jindal Group.

 

"About 30 ships would be for captive use; if required I can always play around," Jha said.

JSW, according to Jha, ordered four ships at Cochin Shipyard, to support the Make in India programme of the Government.

But, the higher prices quoted by other Indian yards and the timeline for construction led JSW to order most of the ships in the first lot of 18 vessels at the Chinese yard.

amallapuram Summit: New era of India-China cooperation begins with ‘Chennai connect’, says Prime Minister October 14 , 2019

CHENNAI: After around five-and-half hours of one-on-one talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in multiple sessions spread over two days, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said a new era of cooperation will begin on Saturday, 12th October, in Sino-India ties through the “Chennai connect”.
In his delegation level talks with Xi at a luxury resort overlooking the Bay of Bengal in Kovalam on the second and final day of the informal summit, Modi noted that India and China were global economic powers during most of the last 2000 years and were returning to stage gradually.
“The Wuhan spirit had given a new momentum and trust to our ties. A new era of cooperation will begin today through ‘Chennai Connect’,” Modi said while referring to the outcome of the first informal summit between the two leaders in the Chinese port last year.
The Prime Minister said strategic communication between the two countries increased following the first informal summit in Wuhan.

CMA CGM to use three ways to complay with IMO 2020 Low Sulphur Regulation

MARSEILLE: The new IMO (International Maritime Organization) 2020 Low Sulphur Regulation will be in effect from January 1st, 2020.

All sea-going vessels worldwide will have to comply and reduce their sulphur emissions by 85%.

To comply with the Regulation, sulphur in fuel oil must be reduced from 3.50% to 0.50%, in addition to the 0.10% sulphur limit already effective in the Emission Control Areas (ECA). This aims to reduce the amount of sulphur oxide emissions and should have major health and environmental benefits globally, including improving air quality and reducing risks of acidification of the oceans.

CMA CGM Group will be compliant with a mix of 3 solutions: using liquid natural gas-powered vessels, using advanced air quality systems onboard our vessels, and as the main solution, using compliant fuels with 0.50% or 0.10% sulphur.

The new IMO 2020 Low Sulphur Regulation impacts the global shipping industry and shipping costs are set to increase worldwide. As the cost of the Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLSFO) is expected to be significantly higher than the present High Sulphur Fuel Oil (HSFO), CMA CGM will implement a new price reference for its short-term and long-term contracts.

For short-term contracts of validity 3 months or shorter, please be informed that a new monthly charge – Low Sulphur Surcharge (LSS) – will be applied on top of CMA CGM’s ocean freight charges, effective 1 December 2019.

For long-term contracts of more than 3 months’ validity, please be advised that VLSFO will replace HSFO as the price reference for the quarterly Bunker Adjustment Factor (BAF), effective 1 January 2020. The BAF is applied on top of the ocean freight charges and will still be revised on a quarterly basis with a one-month notice. Kindly note that the BAF quantum for reefer cargo will be 20% higher than that of dry cargo for the same container size, with a minimum of USD25/TEU.

PESB selects Harjeet Kaur Joshi tao Head SCI October 14 , 2019

NEW DELHI: Smt. Harjeet Kaur Joshi has been approved by the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB), to head The Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), Country’s largest shipping company.

Smt. Harjeet Kaur is currently the Director Finance at SCI and, since September 12, has been holding the additional charge of the Chairperson and Managing Director of the Navratna PSU.

The PESB recommendation has been finalised recently that has to be approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet which will make Smt. Harjeet Kaur as the first lady to Head SCI.

With a very rich and diversified experience spanning over three decades with ONGC, a Mammoth Maharatna PSU, her experience includes almost two decades with ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL – overseas arm of ONGC) which looks after the international business acquisitions of ONGC wherein she was actively associated with the path breaking international transactions which led the company (OVL) to turnaround. This assignment gave her a lot of opportunity to travel and develop her professional attributes to International standards. She started her career as a Lecturer in Delhi University and joined the corporate world in 1984.

She is a Fellow Member of The Institute of Cost Accountants of India and a rank holder in her Post Graduation  in Commerce with specialization in Financial Management from the prestigious Delhi School of Economics, Delhi University.  She believes in continuous learning and has a string of further academic qualifications which she acquired throughout her career.

Essar Ports honoured for CSR initiatives at Seatrade Maritime Awards 2019

MUMBAI: Essar Ports Ltd. has won the Award for its Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives recently. Being a responsible corporate committed to making a positive social impact, Essar Ports has been actively working towards improving education, environment, health care and livelihood for the community. The Award was received by Capt. Sukhdev Singh Bhamra on behalf of Essar Ports Ltd.

Taking place on the first evening of UAE Maritime Week, under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai, and the Chairman of the Executive Council, the Awards ceremony is a highlight in the shipping awards calendar.

The ceremony recognises individuals and organisations that have made noteworthy impact on the market over the course of the past year.

Seatrade Maritime is the largest global media portfolio connecting individuals and corporates to the international maritime market. Its events, publications, awards and websites encompass all aspects of maritime activity. They encourage innovation and facilitate better communication within the industry.

The Award is a matter for great pride for all of us at Essar Ports. It strengthens our belief in growing in unison with the community, and working towards a better and sustainable future, said a company release.