UKMTO/JMIC confirmed at least 4 attacks in the Strait within 72 hours from October 2 to 4. On October 4, the Liberian-registered new-build Aframax oil tanker "Lipsi" (115 thousanddwt, operated by Dynacom, built by Shanhaiguan Shipbuilding Industry, a subsidiary of CSSC, just delivered on August 24) was hit by unknown projectiles in the engine room; on October 2, the Kuwaiti-registered VLCC was attacked and caught fire. According to Reuters, Saudi Arabia is planning a military operation against the Houthis to regain access to the Red Sea.
According to Bloomberg (reprinted by gCaptain): The Iraqi National Tanker Company arranged for a VLCC to transport 2 million barrels of crude oil to the east of Hormuz, the first such arrangement since the crisis. It shows that Iraq is adjusting its export route to avoid risks; during the same period, the G7 and partner countries plan to release up to 100 million barrels of diesel and crude oil emergency reserves to stabilize oil prices.
On October 1, WCI fell 1% month-on-month to $4,434/40ft. Shanghai-Rotterdam fell 2% to $3,399, Shanghai-Genoa fell 3% to $3,702 (the Asia-Europe line fell for 12 consecutive weeks); Shanghai-New York rose 1% to $10,428, and Shanghai-Los Angeles remained stable at $7,835. Suez Weekly traffic volume is 68% higher than the same period last year, increasing effective shipping capacity; China's Golden Week factories are shut down to suppress shipments. Drewry expects freight prices to continue to fall next week.
Hellenic Shipping News Weekly Report: After a cumulative decline of US$2,796 last week, BCI 182 5TC rebounded US$296 on Friday to close at US$45,731 per day; after the sentiment in the two ocean basins weakened in mid-week, market sentiment began to recover over the weekend.
Greek Contships Logistics (focusing on 900–2000TEU feeder ships) signed a letter of intent with Hengli Heavy Industry, planning to order up to 30 1,300TEU feeder container ships (the first 10 ships + 10+10 options), with a single ship of about 28 million US dollars and a total value of about 840 million US dollars. The new ship is designed by the Shanghai Ship Research and Design Institute (actual load is about 1,324TEU, methanol reserved, IMO Tier III); Hengli Heavy Industry has recently won consecutive orders from EMARAT MARITIME in the United Arab Emirates and Songa Box in South Korea, marking the rapid rise of Chinese private shipyards in the feeder box ship market.
According to Clarkson data cited by the International Ship Network: In August, global new ship orders were 176 ships, worth 5.1 million CGT, a decrease of about 41% from July, and a year-on-year decrease of 55 orders; Chinese shipyards undertook 125 ships, worth 4.027 million CGT, accounting for 78.9% of the world in terms of CGT. From January to August, the world received a total of 2,449 orders.