Editorial
It is Thursday the 20th of September and besides being close to the weekend it is also time for Project Cargo Weekly. A trade war between the two biggest trading nations in the world is brewing and it will no-doubt influence shipping.
One thing that comes to mind besides having a strong navy, the US has no (shall we say) real shipping fleet of its own. Sealand is gone, APL was sold off first to Singapore and then to French-owned CMA CGM, so pretty much all foreign trade in/out of the US is seaborne by someone else.
That may not be a problem but, taking into consideration the Chinese tendency to base policy decisions on 5, 10 and 20-year plans and the successful development of their maritime arm COSCO and the inauguration of the 'Iron Silk Road', clearly they have the upper hand in terms of international trade logistics.
So yes, it will be interesting to see how this all plays out when two such proud nations increase the intensity of their twittering.
One thing I can say when looking around my house here is that I believe I can live without my Apple laptop and phone, proudly designed in the US.
I can even replace the bourbon and the Harley in the garage, but I will have more trouble living without Chinese made goods.
On another note regarding China's relationship with the West it is interesting to see how the talk about human rights always seems to die down in the face of another contract being awarded. So much for having a backbone.
Lest I forget, of course, the wife, who was 'made' in China but entered Sweden before the quota was full in Europe :-)
Today in our business interviews we make a trip to speak to a productive project freight forwarder from Uruguay, a country with wonderful steaks and red wine.
We then head to the European based headquarters of a Korean Ro/Ro carrier who ship rolling stock, cars and high & heavy loads.
Finally, we travel to a port city in Belgium, a country that I hear houses the world's best French food. We interview a major terminal operator in Antwerp offering their versatile services for any cargoes to/from Antwerp and beyond in Europe
On top of that, we have an interview with a retired shipping-man, Mr. Poul Holmboe of Aarhus, Denmark. He shares with us a few photos of how breakbulk cargoes were loaded in the past.
Also, don't miss out on taking a look at the videos we have in store for you this week. We wrap it up with the usual wise words to which we should all pay heed.
Finally, for exposure to our more than 70,000 receivers worldwide, consider our media kit, which you can find here.
PCW is, as you know by now, not an Ikea catalog of advertising, nor do we want to be.
Until next week, I remain,
Yours sincerely, Bo H. Drewsen
bo.drewsen@projectcargo-weekly.com
www.projectcargo-weekly.com
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