SHIPPING UPDATES DATED 28.09.2016

We serve you  today’s Shipping News - Tuesday September 27,  2016 to keep you posted on the International Shipping and Air Freight Industry. We’re sure you will find this CNL interesting and informative. 

Air Freight News :

New UN and WCO air cargo unit makes first bust.

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The World Customs Organisation's (WCO) and ICAO’s new Air Cargo Control Unit (ACCU) has completed its first drug seizure.

The ACCU, which was established by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as well as ICAO and the WCO as part of its container control programme, will be established at selected airports to detect illicit goods.

The first pilot unit was established at Karachi International Airport in Pakistan has so far seized a total of 4.6kg of heroin and 8.9kg of crystal meth concealed in marble handicrafts. Three people were arrested  as a result of the investigations.

“It is particularly rewarding for the international organizations involved that the pilot unit at Karachi International Airport successfully implemented the container control air cargo training, provided by trainers of the UK Border Force and WCO, and recently seized separately two shipments destined for Damman and Dubai,” the WCO said.

WCO, UNODC and ICAO will expand the Air Cargo segment of the Container Control Programme to other airports in Asia, Latin America and the MENA region.

The establishment of the air cargo control unit in Karachi was financially supported by the governments of Denmark and the US.

Dirk Reich planning to open consultancy offices next year.

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Former Cargolux chief executive Dirk Reich’s aviation consultancy is planning to open offices in Zhengzhou and Luxembourg at the start of next year.

The company, R+R International Aviation, will provide senior advice and investments in the fields of aviation, logistics, e-commerce and China with its current core activity being the promotion of cross border investments between the Henan province and Europe.

Dirk Reich holds the position of founder and chairman, while Julia Reich is listed as chief executive, Elke Reich chief financial officer and Axel Reich as the Germany representative.

Reports in Luxembourg Wort say the company has existed for some time but has now been reactivated.

Sea Freight News :

Cochin Port starts coastal shipping of cars Business Standard Cochin Port, one of the top 12 major ports in the country, has begun coastal transportation of cars, with carrier ship M V Dresden carrying 500 vehicles reached with first consignment. The Ministry of Shipping said, "The car carrier has circuit of Ennore-Cochin-Kandla-Cochin-Ennore, connecting the automobile production hubs in Tamil Nadu in the East coast and Gujarat and Haryana in the West of India. The ship has 13 decks with the capacity to carry 4,300 cars." M V Dresden is a foreign carrier of Cyprus registration, which has obtained licence for coastal run between the ports in India, and is of 177 metre length and 7 metre draft. The operator of the Car Carrier is SICAL Logistics based in Chennai, which is a leading player in bulk operations in many ports and operates a Coal Terminal at Ennore. "The operator will be carrying the vehicles of Renault, Ford, Hyundai and Toyota from Tamil Nadu and Honda and Ford from Gujarat. The operator is also targeting Maruti. The Steamer Agent of the Car Carrier at Cochin is Neo Logistics," the statement said.

How Gadkari’s Grand Ideas Are Reshaping India’s Transportation Sector Swarajya They say an idea can change your life. Small ideas often lead to larger ones and could usher in a revolution. The Industrial Revolution happened because of ideas – ideas on science, ideas on how the church was wrong, ideas on promoting knowledge and so on. Keeping all this in mind, it does come as a surprise when an Indian minister shows that he is open to ideas. Being open to new ideas is the first step in sparking major changes in lifestyle which impact everyday incidents and also have long-term advantages. Three ministers, Suresh Prabhu, Piyush Goyal and Nitin Gadkari, have shown that they are not against trying out new ideas; but among them, it is Gadkari, who stands out. Those who have travelled on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway would know what a stellar work of infrastructure it is. In 1997, former Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray had told Gadkari that Mumbai to Pune travel must not take more than three hours.

Trial run of GPS-monitored cargo truck between India and Bangladesh successful India Today Following the success of the trial run of the GPS-monitored cargo truck between India and Bangladesh, secure and smooth movement of cargo trucks will soon become a reality. In near future, cargo trucks plying between Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal will be cleared expeditiously as they will be closely monitored through a common GPS protocol and will be sealed electronically. Senior customs official said that following the success of the trial run, the Union ministries of Finance and Road Transport are now working out the modalities to put the system in place soon. This new system will ensure fool-proof security and will also ease traffic congestion at the borders. This will also make tampering with the cargo impossible. Earlier this month, a new chapter in Customs Cooperation between India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal was opened when cargo-laden truck from Bangladesh carrying readymade garments entered the Customs ICD, Patparganj, Delh.

DP World adds two new routes to Container Rail Road Services portfolio Business Line Global trade enabler, the DP World-operated Container Rail Road Services (CRRS), has added two new rail services to its portfolio so as to increase connectivity between Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNPT) and Kanpur, and Mundra and ICD Bawal in Rewari district of Haryana. The services operate on eco-friendly and energy-efficient modes of transport which warrant reduction in costs through railroad, and further ease congestion at ports and national highways. Trucking solutions have also been introduced to enable easy movement of cargo to and from ICDs to the customers’ door step, said Anil Singh, Senior Vice-President and Managing Director, DP World Subcontinent, in a statement here on Monday. He said CRRS enables the company to go beyond the terminal gates, to get closer to its customers and offer services to their logistics chain.

Tax department issues draft rules on registration, invoice and payments Indian Express To prepare the groundwork for a smooth rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), the tax department on Monday released three sets of draft rules and their formats relating to registration, invoice and payments under the new indirect tax regime. The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has invited comments on draft rules by Wednesday, which would be finalised by Friday. The draft rules provide for online registration by residents within three days of submission of application. Non-residents coming under the purview of GST will be required to electronically submit the application for registration at least 5 days prior to the commencement of business and shall also deposit full tax liability in advance. Registered taxable person shall display his certificate of registration and GST identification number in a prominent location at his principal place of business and at every additional place or places of business, the CBEC said.

Government to Jawaharlal Nehru: Lift extra import charges JOC Terminals at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, India’s biggest container gateway, have come under fire from customs authorities for collecting “unauthorized” charges from shippers toward using the direct port delivery scheme meant to speed up cargo flows and lower logistics costs. The DPD procedure facilitates speedy processing of documentation and customs duty payment via a dedicated customs wing and has encountered many operational bottlenecks since its expanded launch in February because of additional terminal demands. "It has come to the notice of the department that port terminals are asking the ACP [accredited client program] clients to give a security deposit as a precondition of registration [for DPD services],” the JNPT customs directorate said in a public notice. “Port terminals can’t put an extra condition on DPD applicants from their side without approval of the competent authority.”

BBIN can be a game-changer Dhaka Tribune The three planned land ports under the Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal initiative will, if implemented properly, revitalise trade relations in the region and open up new vistas for Bangladesh. The proposed land ports in Sylhet, Rangamati, and Satkhira are strategically placed for the greatest trade benefits. The Bhomra port in Satkhira, for example, is close enough to Kolkata to drastically reduce import-exports costs between India and Bangladesh. Safe, economically efficient, and environmentally sound road transportation policies would go a long way towards cutting out unnecessary hindrances to trade in the region that the business community often faces. With lower transportation costs, improved facilities, and increased trading capacity, everybody wins. Greater regional cooperation between these four countries is imperative if the region is to prosper, and BBIN may have a chance to succeed in areas where SAARC has failed.

Exempt accredited warehouses from stock limits, says Sebi Business Standard The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has written to the finance ministry seeking exemption for exchange-accredited warehouses from stock limits under the Essential Commodities Act. “We want warehouses registered with commodity derivatives exchanges to be exempt from stock limits,” said S K Mohanty, executive director, Sebi. He was speaking on the sidelines of a two-day conference on agriculture supply chains here on Monday. There are 1.4 million tonnes of warehousing space accredited with exchanges. Stock limits now apply in sugar and pulses. Among pulses, only chana is allowed to be traded on the futures market. Here too, launch of new contracts has been suspended because of a spike in spot prices. Sugar mills and traders face stock limits.

Land acquisition formalities hold up Wardha dry port work Times of India Union shipping minister Nitin Gadkari and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis both hail from Vidarbha. However, this has not helped the proposed dry port at Sindi in Wardha district. Gadkari had announced two satellite ports of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) at Aurangabad and Wardha. While the work on the former has started, land acquisition for the latter is yet to be completed. The Sindi port requires 350 acres of which 212 acres belong to SICOM, a government of Maharashtra undertaking. JNPT, in its board meeting, has already passed a resolution to provide money to SICOM in lieu of the land, but the hand over has not taken place due to some remaining formalities. Vivek Deshpande, a JNPT trustee from Aurangabad, told TOI, "We have placed tenders for building the compound wall of the Aurangabad dry port. The preparation of development plan is also in advanced stage."

SLPA warns against too much competition in Colombo Container Management As the tender process for Colombo’s East Container Terminal (ECT) enters its next phase, the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is concerned about excessive competition at the port. China Merchants operates the only current deep water terminal in the port, while an APM Terminals (APMT)-backed consortium and the port authority itself run the other facilities. At present, “the three terminals are competing and my view is that it is not a healthy situation,” SLPA chairman Dammika Ranatunga told the Sunday Observer. “I believe we need to do a concerted marketing plan, putting our strengths together and get more volumes in,” he added. The deadline for Expressions of Interest (EOIs) in the pre-qualification stage to build and operate the terminal was extended for the second time to September 22. “We have had preliminary discussions,” Ranatunga stated.

Government working to give services trade a reforms push Economic Times Worried by the shrinking trade surplus in services, the government is working on a bouquet of reforms to play to the country's core strengths of technology, leisure travel and medical tourism. The commerce department has circulated a cabinet note on domestic reforms to enhance earnings from services exports, detailing measures that can be implemented after due deliberations. "It is work in progress. There are services like IT, tourism, medical tourism, legal and education, which are not our jurisdiction...We can apply our mind but it is up to the line ministries,"said an official, requesting anonymity. The services trade surplus narrowed 9% to $5.36 billion in July from $5.88 billion a year ago. The department is calling for an overarching strategy dealing with services exports as it is an area of strength that the country can leverage as it enters into trade deals.

Maersk abandons mega ship ordering to focus on liner acquisitions Sea News AP Moeller-Maersk has revealed plans to stop ordering new containerships and instead turn its attention to acquiring shipping lines. Maersk Group chairman Michael Pram Rasmussen told Bloomberg that the company "is done with ordering new steel". He said no longer made sense to order new ships as there are already too many in the market. "So if we want to grow, we need to do it through acquisitions so that we don't flood the market with more ships," he said, Maersk Line still has 27 ships in its order book, corresponding to 12 per cent of its current fleet. The container industry's combined order book represents 17 per cent of the global fleet. "It has previously made a lot of sense when we went out and ordered specific vessels," Mr Rasmussen said. But "there's already a large order book in the market and at the same time, world trade isn't growing a great deal."

Courtesy : ACI & IST.