IRAN is to release the crew of the 15,000 TEU MSC Aries containership soon, the country's foreign minister said over the weekend, according to Singapore's Splash 247.

The Israeli-linked ship with 25 crew onboard was hijacked on April 13 by Iran's Revolutionary Guards, just ahead of Tehran launching a missile volley at Israel.



The vessel is currently anchored near three other ships Iran has seized in recent months, reports Singapore's Splash 247.



The world's leading shipping associations highlighted the inequality seafarers face as hostages in a recent open letter to the United Nations secretary-general, Antonio Guterres.



"The world would be outraged if four airliners were seized and held hostage with innocent souls onboard. Regrettably, there does not seem to be the same response or concern for the four commercial vessels and their crews being held hostage," stated the open letter sent by sixteen shipping organizations.



An NYK-operated car carrier, the Galaxy Leader, remains in Yemeni waters, having been hijacked six months ago by the Houthis, while off the Horn of Africa Somali pirates have resumed their ransom tactics, abducting two ships in recent months.



"Innocent seafarers have been killed, seafarers are being held hostage. This would be unacceptable on land, and it is unacceptable at sea," the letter to the UN boss warned, demanding the UN body create an enhanced coordinated military presence, missions and patrols in the region and that all efforts possible are brought to bear to release the many seafarers currently being held hostage in the Middle East.

THE Port of Baltimore received its first container ship since the tragic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge one month ago.

The arrival is an important milestone for Baltimore businesses and longshoremen, who have been heavily impacted by the closure of the inner harbour, reports Fort Lauderdale's The Maritime Executive.



The sub-Panamax MSC Passion III transited through the temporary 35-foot-deep shipping channel at about 5.30 pm local time last Saturday, and then moored alongside at Seagirt.



About 80 union longshoremen were there to meet the ship and handle her cargo. The port is an important local source of well-paid jobs, and the longshore community has been particularly hard-hit by the closure.



The Passion III is a 2,800 TEU feeder vessel - about average for the decade when the Key Bridge was built, but far smaller than the 10,000 TEU Dali or even larger modern ships that call Baltimore today.



Passion III's small size allowed her to access the harbour: with her current draft of 30.5 feet, she could fit through the 35-foot-deep "limited access channel" that the Army Corps of Engineers recently cleared through the bridge's wreckage.



"Around that 35-foot draft is where you're really starting to get some of the inventory that's coming onboard that had really been some of the hallmarks of The Port of Baltimore," Maryland Governor Wes Moore said at a news conference last week.



A container-on-barge service from Port of Virginia arrived as soon as the channel opened, but MSC Passion III was the first self-propelled boxship to enter the harbour.



The complex operation to restore the waterway to its full navigable depth and remove the damaged boxship Dali is still under way, and will likely continue until the end of May.



The litigation over the impact of the closure is just beginning. The latest complaint was a class-action lawsuit filed by Baltimore printing house American Publishing last week.



The suit alleges that the publisher's local clients have stopped placing orders due to the effects of the port shutdown. The company claims that its revenue has plummeted by 84 per cent compared with the same time last year.



Much like an earlier suit brought by the City of Baltimore, American Publishing's civil action accuses the owner and operator of Dali of a "failure to ensure the seaworthiness of the vessel that ultimately led to the bridge's destruction."

THE Port Authority of Valencia (PAV) has reported that Ukraine, Turkey, Algeria and Saudi Arabia, are gaining visibility in the traffic statistics.

So far this year, the volume of tonnes imported from Ukraine has been 354,265 tonnes, which is 116.68 per cent greater than the amount unloaded in the same period last year. Goods in transit increased by 20.16 per cent, while exports stayed at zero.



According to PAV, traffic to the Far East is growing in importance. The number of TEU handled in the first three months of the year was 207,838 - up by 23.38 per cent, reports London's Port Technology.



China remains Valenciaport's major commercial partner, accounting for 157,025 TEU (+36.43 per cent).



However, the countries with the highest TEU traffic with Valencia were Greece (+82.91 per cent), Egypt (+81.45 per cent), and Saudi Arabia (+76.61 per cent), owing to an increase in transshipment traffic at Valencian docks, primarily from Asia and destined for other Mediterranean ports.



PAV reported that Algeria and Turkey are two more nations that have increased their statistical visibility by 29.01 per cent and 21.75 per cent, respectively.



Exports to Morocco (+16.59 per cent) and France (+64.45 per cent) also increased significantly in the first quarter of the year.



Overall, during March, Valenciaport's docks handled almost 7 million tonnes (+3.84 per cent).



In terms of containers, 459,749 TEU were handled (+15.86 per cent). According to PAV, traffic handled in TEU stands at 1.24 million units (+12.07 per cent).



In March, PAV reported that export freights steadied and increased by 2.13 per cent.

HONG Kong's Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL), a unit of COSCO, has inaugurated the Transpacific Latin Pacific 5 (TLP5) service to offer express linkage between Asia and Mexico.

"To enhance our network coverage in the emerging markets, we are very pleased to launch a new service Transpacific Latin Pacific 5 (TLP5) in our Asia Latin America network to provide a comprehensive port coverage in the regions," the carrier said in a statement.



In addition to OOC' s existing loops TLP1/2 /3, the new service will offer direct connections between China, Korea and Mexico, with a competitive transit time of 15 and 20 days from Qingdao to Ensenada and Manzanillo, respectively.



Port rotation for TLP5: Pusan, Dalian, Ningbo, Shanghai, Qingdao, Ensenada, Manzanillo, Ensenada, Yokohama and returning to Pusan.



The new service will commence from Ningbo ETA May 6, 2024.

THE volume of container cargo processed at South Korean seaports increased 5.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2024 on the back of increased shipments to the United States and China.

According to statistics from the country's Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, the container cargo handled at the ports nationwide came to 7.77 million TEU in the first quarter, rising from 7.34 million TEU tallied a year earlier, reports South Korea's Yonhap News Agency.



The volume of container cargo handled for exports and imports increased by 4 per cent to 4.34 million TEU, driven by a surge in trade with the US and China, which saw volumes rise by 20.6 per cent and 8.3 per cent, respectively.



Non-container cargo handled at the ports slid 3.4 per cent year on year to 268.29 million tonnes in the first quarter, the data showed.



"Following the improving production and consumption indicators of major countries, including China and the US, the amount of container cargo gained ground in the first quarter," Oceans Minister Kang Do-hyung said in a statement.

ABU Dhabi-based ports and logistics giant AD Ports Group has secured a 20-year concession agreement for Angola's Luanda multipurpose port terminal.

The agreement, extendable for another 10 years, will see AD Ports invest US$251 million towards modernizing the terminal and developing the logistics business over the next three years, potentially increasing to $379 million over the concession term, reports Singapore's Splash 247.



The Group has also sealed deals with local logistics and transport companies Unicargas and Multiparques to acquire an 81 per cent stake in a joint venture that will operate the terminal and a 90 per cent stake in another joint venture that will serve the facility and the broader Angolan logistics market.



Under the concession agreement, the existing multipurpose facility will be upgraded to a container and roro terminal. Redevelopment is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2026, ultimately boosting container handling volumes from 25,000 TEU to 350,000 TEU, and roro volumes to over 40,000 vehicles.



Furthermore, the Group's other joint venture with Unicargas will provide integrated logistics and freight forwarding services for local, regional and international clients. It will be operated by AD Ports' Noatum Logistics, which will manage the movement of containers to Multiparques Viana inland container depot and offer short- and long-haul transport within Angola and to the neighbouring countries.



AD Ports said it is also exploring opportunities to support Angola's offshore industry and other maritime sectors, by deploying work accommodation vessels, passenger ferries, platform supply vessels, and other assets.



Angola's container volumes are projected to rise at an average annual rate of 3.3 per cent over the next decade. The port of Luanda handles more than 76 per cent of the country's container and general cargo volumes and serves as one of the main transshipment hubs for Central-West Africa, enabling trade access to land-locked countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.

DANISH transport and logistics company DSV's airfreight volumes benefited from strong demand out of Asia in the first quarter of the year, although revenue and profit fell as rates dropped in the market.

The forwarder's airfreight volumes increased 2.3 per cent in the first quarter of 2024 to 335,213 tonnes, compared to 327,712 tonnes in the same period last year.



"The air freight market is impacted by continued high growth in e-commerce volumes from China, driving both market volumes and rates up."



DSV noted that the airfreight market is dealing with overcapacity but reflected that it expects that retirement of old aircraft will offset some of this excess capacity.



However, airfreight revenue dropped 14.7 per cent and airfreight gross profit fell 22.2 per cent, reports London's Air Cargo News.



Overall, the Air & Sea division recorded an 11.5 per cent decline in revenue for the first quarter. "Revenue was impacted by higher volumes in both air and sea, but this was offset by lower average freight rates," said DSV.



Plus, gross profit for the division fell 16.2 per cent, reflecting a normalization of freight rates and yields, said DSV. "This was caused by lower gross profit yields, partly offset by volume growth for both air and sea," noted the company.



Across the whole group, revenue declined 5 per cent to DKK38.4 billion (US$5.5 billion) and gross profit declined 8.6 per cent to DKK10.3 billion.



Jens Lund, group chief executive, said: "We are off to a good start delivering strong financial results in the first quarter of 2024, and I'm particularly satisfied that we are gaining market shares in all three divisions. We do this in a market that is normalizing after a few very volatile years following the Covid pandemic."

ICELANDAIR Group has recorded an improvement in its cargo operation, with a return to operating profit in the first quarter.

The company stated that it is "on track" to deliver a full-year operating profit in the division after implementing a number of efficiency measures.



The company's cargo business reported a first-quarter operating profit (ebit) of US$19,000 compared with a loss of $3.8 million for the same period last year.



The cargo business' overall loss for the quarter narrowed to $457,000 compared with $3.6 million during the same period last year.



It reduced freight capacity by 9 per cent as part of this efficiency effort. The company said capacity was consequently "better aligned" with demand, with flown freighter block hours 35 per cent down on last year.



One of the carrier's freighters has been placed on long-term lease.



As a result of the measures, Icelandair Cargo's revenues of $20.7 million for the first three months were down 13 per cent.



Chief executive Bogi Nils said the positive operating figure in February and March demonstrates a "great turnaround" compared with last year.



Icelandair Group said the cargo business last year was "difficult" and that - along with leasing out a freighter - it has adjusted the cargo flight schedule and made organizational changes, measures which are "now starting to pay off", writes London's Air Cargo News.

AIR Canada Cargo will add Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to its freighter network from June 2, reports London's Air Cargo News.

The service will operate three times per week (Wednesday, Friday, Sunday) with a Boeing 767 freighter, connecting Air Canada Cargo's global hub at Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) with its self-handled warehouse operation at ORD.



Jon Turner, vice president, Cargo at Air Canada, said: "We are excited to add Chicago to Air Canada Cargo's robust network, achieved through the strategic use of our freighters and the global reach of Air Canada's extensive passenger network.



"In Chicago, we also leverage our extensive trucking network to extend our reach, adding to Air Canada Cargo's competitive edge.



"As a true global combination carrier, adding Chicago further expands on our commitment to provide consistent capacity to our valued customers and respond to the demands of the market."



Earlier this month, Air Canada launched four Boeing 787-9 flights a week connecting Vancouver and Singapore Changi airports, with SATS providing cargo handling services at Singapore Changi.

US Part 135 cargo airline Ameriflight has appointed Patrick Fluegeman as president and chief operating officer.

Mr Fluegeman will be responsible for planning and executing current and future business operation strategies focusing on the regional express airfreight market, writes London's Air Cargo News.



Most recently, he spent seven years with ABX Air, a US cargo airline operating a fleet of Boeing 767 freighters for customers in the e-commerce and express delivery markets. He held a number of operation leadership roles, ending his time there as chief operating officer.



Prior to his time at ABX, he held a number of finance leadership roles with the cargo airline Southern Air (now part of Atlas Air) and with the financial services firm Deloitte."The board and I are confident that Patrick will be a great fit for building on Ameriflight's momentum," said Ameriflight owner and chairman, Jim Martell.



"It's a tremendous opportunity to join such a long-standing, industry-leading company," said Mr Fluegeman. "As I have gotten to know the team, it has become clear to me that Ameriflight operates with purpose and is passionate about its mission of Delivering More Than Cargo."