So many vessels have flocked to Singapore because it has few storms, excellent ship repair teams, cheap bunker fuel from its own refinery and, most important, proximity to Asian ports that might eventually have cargo to ship.
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despite some positive signs, including a Wall Street rally and slower job losses in the United States, many in the shipping business say the current level of trade does not suggest a recovery soon.
The Anti-Pirate Manual
I have organized and conducted anti-piracy operations in the Strait of Molucca, between Malaysia and Indonesia. We found that the best tactic was to let the pirates know you were alert and watching for them. I was working with oil rigs being towed at 5 knots, a much easier target than a tanker or a freighter.
Guns are frankly unnecessary, and add risk of fire, explosion and accidental shooting. It will also make the pirates more likely to use deadly force.
Pirates have difficulty boarding larger vessels under way, so they rely on surprise. Usually, the first that a crew knows that there are pirates on board is when they show up in the bridge. Constant deck watches, bright spotlights, radar surveillance, and fire hoses streaming water over the side are all tools that have proven very effective. Guns are frankly unnecessary, and add risk of fire, explosion and accidental shooting. It will also make the pirates more likely to use deadly force — right now they know that most commercial vessels are unarmed, and to change that presumption will have unintended consequences.
Maritime law requires that ships under way do so under running lights only — they cannot light up the decks unless they are at anchor. This law favors the pirates, as it makes it easier for them to hide. A change or suspension of this law might be something to consider.
There is a vast body of recent experience dealing with pirates. What is happening off of Somalia is not new — the Bay of Bengal, Strait of Molucca, Singapore Strait and South China Sea have been piracy hot spots for many years. The regional governments have had great success against pirates by coordinating military response.
Commercial and private vessels should stick to anti-piracy measures (passive measures designed to deter attack) while leaving the counter-piracy (seek and destroy) operations to the various navies of the world.
— Ross Johnson
"The White House appeared stunned by the uprising, over a transaction that they considered routine — especially since China's biggest state-owned shipper runs major ports in the United States, as do a host of other foreign companies. Mr. Bush's aides defended their decision, saying the company, Dubai Ports World, which is owned by the United Arab Emirates, would have no control over security issues."
This should have said "China's biggest state-owned shipping company", which by the way is COSCO (not to be confused with Costco).
A shipper is whomever is shown on the billing of lading as the shipper. This can be the manufacturer, the exporter (which is not necessarily the same), a freight forwarder, a non-vessel-operating common carrier (yes, that is what NVOCC stands for), or even the brother-in-law of the person buying the goods. Believe me, after 30 years in this industry I have seen it all.
But, a shipper is not those big metal things that float on the water and transport goods across bodies of water.
Those things are called ships.
The companies which operates ships are called shipping companies, or steamship lines, or ocean carriers, or maybe lots of other things. But never, ever a shipper.
Unless of course the shipping company is shipping something that belongs to it, such as spare parts for the ship. Then it would be the shipper.
No wonder people think international shipping is difficult.
