Shipping Industry

A big opportunity for shipping companies and investors

[!quote] The amount of goods shipping is only going to increase - CEO of logistics firm, Shiplo, Daniel Cunningham

[!quote] From the days of horse and cart to the present day, sea travel still provides the most direct and efficient mechanism for moving large quantities of freight – Nick Bartlett, co founder and director of Wayfindr, Hong Kong based logistics provider.

• Shipping industry continues to be the backbone of international trade and global supply chains

• Middle East remains to be the big shipping hub for oil, but it doesn't play as large a role in global trade, as people tend to assume, accounting for around 10% of overall global shipping volumes.

• Customers have moved away from choosing the cheapest shipping options towards arrangements that emphasise continuity of supply, reliability, and availability of alternatives.

Middle east governments are investing in major projects like

1. Saudi Arabia's Neom City
2. aggressive capital spending by AD ports, developer and regulator of infrastructure in Abu Dhabi
3. Iraq's Grand Faw port

Other government's projects

1. India's opening of its first deep water port at Vizhinjam
2. DP World pouring billions through Senegal, Democratic Republic of Congo to London

Future markets in Africa

• The region that will see the most explosive growth in the next decade is Africa, especially the western side of the continent.

• 10 years before, there was virtually no trade between Asia and Africa. But the development of online marketplaces like Jumia, Africa is importing huge volumes of Chinese products.

• An increase in industrial production in Africa, also led to starting of a exporter.

Ports like

1. Senegal's Ndayane
2. Nigeria's Bakassi Deep are positioning themselves as next generations Atlantic gateways.

Arctic sea route

• There is a new interest in the trans- Arctic shipping route, also called northeastern passage, connecting Atlantic and the Pacific via Arctic coasts of Norway and Russia.

Digitalisation

• Reduces the time and money spent
• Forecasting allows companies to consider different factors like
  • seasonality
  • customer's behaviour
  • market trends
  • changing commercial conditions
  • reduce shortages
  • excess inventories
  • need for emergency logistics decisions

Use of AI

• boost efficiency by cutting cost and paperwork
• Decisions can be carried out by AI agents, autonomous programs without human intervention
• Reduce waste
• Make sure every bit of the spare capacity of the vessel is used

Environmental regulations

• Stricter environmental regulations
• Proposed global carbon tax, despite opposition from Saudi Arabia and US
• EU already added carbon taxation to the shipping industry

[!fact] Decarbonisation of the global shipping fleet, may cost $1.4 trillion

[!fact] At least $500 billion will be needed to retro fit existing ships to take greener fuels

[!date] If you order a ship today (2026), you have to wait until at least 2030 to get it. Most major ship builders have a backlog of at least 3 years.

Role of Insurance companies

• As the market is getting more dynamic, insurance companies are moving away from basing their prices on historical routes, standards risk assumptions and established coverage models to a more bespoke approach considering changing geopolitical conditions and operational resilience.

• This approach provides greater interaction between insurance providers and logistics planners rather than treating insurance as a separate administrative function.

• As the market is becoming more data dependent, some insurers are asking for real time updates about vessel's location, routes, history, cargo data and even exposure to sanctions,

• Compliance, becoming a bigger issue, demand for sanction screening tools.

Companies

1. Matson - one of the world's largest shipping companies - NYSE: MATX
2. HD Hyundai - one of the world's largest ship building companies, based on Korea -Seoul: 267250
3. Samsung Heavy Industries - makes vast revenue from shipbuilding - Seoul: 010140