Shanghai-Taiwan trade increases 66.6pc in first half

PostTime:2010-08-04 08:57:23 View:524

SHANGHAI's trade with Taiwan increased 66.6 per cent year on year to US$15.69 billion in the first half of 2010, showing 27.1 per cent more growth than the city's total foreign trade volume, reported Xinhua.Shanghai export volume to Taiwan reached a value of US$5.27 billion, a growth of 66.4 per cent year on year. Import value came to US$10.42 billion, double the export figure of export. Figures indicate that trade volumes and values have returned to pre-downturn levels of 2008, said the report.

Shanghai trade value hits record high, up 39.5pc in first half

PostTime:2010-08-03 08:38:51 View:783

SHANGHAI's foreign trade value increased 39.5 per cent year on year to US$315.58 billion in the first half of 2010, reported Xinhua.The increase, a record high, represents a 6.5 per cent jump on the same period of 2008, the time before global financial crisis, said Xinhau.In the first six months, Shanghai export value came to US$192.05 billion, increasing 2.1 per cent against the first half before the recession in 2008. Imports increased 14 per cent to US$123.53 billion over those 2008 figures, totalling a net gain of US$68.53 billion.While trade value has returned to Shanghai's pre-recessionary levels, export volumes to EU and Japan lag behind 2008 records. But the exports of emerging economies like ASEAN are expected to grow rapidly.

Shanghai port throughput up 18.8% in first half 2010

PostTime:2010-07-21 16:05:56 View:421

Container throughput at Shanghai, China’s biggest port, climbed 18.8 percent to 13.86 million TEUs in the first six months of this year compared with 11.67 million TEUs in the same period in 2009, and whole-year performance is expected to exceed previous estimates with global trade gradually recovering.The city handled a total of 211.5 million tonnes of dry bulk goods, a 24.8 percent advance from the same period a year ago, the Shanghai Daily reported.Waigaoqiao port remains the busiest port in the country with dry bulk cargo throughput climbing 16.5 percent to 67.4 million tonns. Container volume was up 13.5 percent to reach 7.2 million TEUs over the first six months.Container throughput at the Yangshan Deep-Water Port rose 30.6 percent to 4.7 million TEUs after the Shanghai government's preferential policies attracted shipping companies to use the port as a transfer hub."Growth at domestic ports in the second half may not be as strong as the first half and in the long run the growth rate will be between 10 to 15 percent," Bank of China International's Du Jianping wrote in a report."Government policies as well as the economic situation of surrounding markets will also have an impact on their performances," he added.

Shanghai could beat Singapore at busiest port

PostTime:2010-07-16 12:21:16 View:405

Shanghai could beat Singapore as the world's busiest container port this year as the Chinese port moved more containers than the city-state did from April to June, Singapore Government News reported. Divay Goel, head of Asia operations at Drewry Shipping Consultants said, "Shanghai could beat Singapore this year, but it will be a close match."June's data from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) showed that Shanghai moved 2.44 million TEUs against Singapore's 2.39 million.For six months up to June 30, Singapore ferried 14.05 million TEUs compared with Shanghai's 13.85 million, a difference of about 40 average-sized container ships. A strong rebound in world trade has seen container traffic passing through Shanghai's ports grow at a rapid pace of 19 percent over last year's figure, as against Singapore's 14 percent.

Shanghai tipped to overtake Singapore port

PostTime:2010-07-14 08:11:11 View:939

Singapore could lose its crown as the world's busiest container port to Shanghai this year, reported the Strait Times.The Chinese port moved more containers than Singapore did from April to last month, and may clinch the leader's status by year-end."Shanghai could beat Singapore this year, but it will be a close match,'' said Divay Goel, head of Asia operations at Drewry Shipping Consultants.Last month's data from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) showed that Shanghai moved 2.44 million TEUs to Singapore's 2.39 million.For the six months to June 30, Singapore moved 14.05 million TEUs compared with Shanghai's 13.85 million, 200,000 container boxes more, or a difference of about 40 average-sized container ships.A strong rebound in world trade this year has had container traffic through Shanghai's ports growing at a blistering pace of 19 per cent over last year's figure, compared with Singapore's 14 per cent.Analysts had expected Shanghai to pip Singapore as early as two years ago, but that did not happen when the global recession put a dent in Chinese exports.And while it now seems inevitable that Shanghai will surpass Singapore, the result is not so cut and dried.The region's rapid development means Shanghai faces more competition from other ports, such as Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Ningbo-Zhoushan, while growth in emerging economies such as Vietnam and Indonesia should continue to benefit Singapore's transhipments.And though Singapore may lose the bragging rights that come with being No. 1, it should continue to benefit from its hub status; the maritime industry contributes seven per cent to gross domestic product and employs more than 100,000 people.An MPA spokesman said: "Regardless of the eventual results come year end, the port of Singapore remains a key transhipment hub and one of the top container ports in the world."The port of Singapore continues to see good growth and strong demand, and MPA will continue to invest in the development and expansion of the port to meet future demands.''CIMB-GK economist Song Seng Wun said: "We should not be looking in terms of Shanghai or Singapore. As long as we see that the numbers here are still growing in line with economic growth, it means we are participating in the growth rather than competing for it.''Singapore surpassed Hong Kong as the port with the highest container traffic five years ago, and has held the unofficial title since then.Large ships laden with goods stop in Singapore, a major transhipment hub on the Asia-Europe trade route, to load and unload to smaller ships.The recent growth in intra-Asia trade has also boosted Singapore's container traffic.Shanghai's growth has been a story of China's rapid economic rise, as it is the major gateway port to the massive Chinese hinterland.Besides huge volumes of exports, Shanghai ports are dealing with growing amounts of imports coming in to meet the demands of the country's fast-expanding domestic markets.The value of China's imports grew from US$259 billion in 2002 to $1.1 trillion in 2008, while exports surged $326 billion to $1.4 trillion.DBS economist Irvin Seah said: "Asia has become the most important engine of growth in the global economy, with China at the centre of all this action.'"So we can expect trade flows in and out of China to grow exponentially. This is a trend that will persist in the years ahead as China contributes more and more to global growth.''Shanghai has been breathing down Singapore's neck since it overtook Hong Kong in terms of containers moved three years ago.Shanghai is already the world's biggest port including goods not moved in containers, as it is a huge consumer of raw materials such as iron ore.

New leasing player aims to 'open up' Shanghai market

PostTime:2010-07-09 08:22:02 View:517

Banks are positioning themselves at the forefront of China's twin ambitions of modernising its maritime industry and transforming Shanghai into an international shipping hub. That is the view of insiders close to a new leasing company that was set up in Shanghai last week. It aims to open up the city to more involvement from foreign shipping players. China's Bank of Communications (BoCom) has established a special purpose vehicle (SPV) that will charter out vessels at low risk in the Shanghai Comprehensive Free Trade Zone. An insider close to the scheme tells TradeWinds that the goal is to help overseas players work more freely in the Chinese market. "Currently in China we control foreign money very strictly and do not let it move in or out of the country," he said. "So we have set up an SPV to provide a platform where money can be more fluid in the international market." He adds that foreign companies will also be attracted by tax breaks on offer in the city's three separate free-trade areas. Domestic companies are also being assisted by the lack of restrictions in the special areas at Pudong Airport, Waigaoqiao Port and Yangshan Port, the source says. For example, Chinese shipowners who set up bases within the zones can own ships flying foreign flags. Sinotrans has become the first with such a vessel. Domestic companies are only allowed to own Chinese-registered vessels and until now have had to set up foreign offices for tonnage registered elsewhere. Shanghai stepped up its aim of becoming the world's leading shipping hub in terms of financial, legal and related support services by 2020 last November, when it established an all-encompassing commission to spearhead the policy. The commission, which is led by Shanghai vice-mayor Yang Xiong, also manages the city's three free-trade areas. Its aim is to transform them into leading Asian offshore-trading centres. The commission also wants to achieve 12% economic growth in the bonded zones this year, a trade volume of CNY 410bn ($60.7bn) and industrial output worth CNY 55bn. The target is for Shanghai to compete with London, Hong Kong and Singapore as a modern maritime hub. But this depends heavily on it shedding its image as a traditional port.

SWS inks VLCC's and VLOC's

PostTime:2010-06-10 08:23:07 View:1036

China's Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding has inked two very large crude carriers and two 205,000-dwt ultra-capesize bulk carriers with Greece’s Angelicoussis shipping group. In addition, the shipowner has options for one further VLCC and one additional ultra-capesize. All the vessels are scheduled for delivery in 2013. The VLCC's, for the Greek group’s Maran Tankers division, are understood to be costing under $100m each. On the dry bulk side, the group’s bulker wing, Anangel Maritime, is thought to want the SWS ultra-capesizes for the Australian iron ore trade, although it is understood no charters have yet been arranged. It is the third Greek owner recently to order ultra-capes of about 205,000 dwt, otherwise known as newcastlemaxes. Market sources suggested a price of $61m per vessel in the contracts with SWS, which is about $2m more than the price quoted by Diana Shipping two months ago when it ordered two such bulkers at SWS’ Shanghai Jiangnan-Changxing yard. However, the price is less than that for a trio of similar bulkers booked with SWS by fellow Athens-based owner OceanFreight.

Shanghai shows it has what it takes

PostTime:2010-05-07 08:36:54 View:480

The 2010 World Expo is being seen within China as Shanghai's "coming out" party. But the city's long openness to foreign influences will likely see it achieve its dream of becoming a modern maritime hub within the next 10 years. Barely a day goes by without state-run local newspaper The Shanghai Daily mentioning the grand ambitions of its hometown. Civic pride in Shanghai runs deep. The Shanghainese have long grown tired of sneering Beijingers looking down on what they consider to be a younger, slightly restless sibling. The city is eager to make its own name on the global scene. Beijing was justifiably proud of the 2008 Olympics but now it is Shanghai's turn to be on show. But while Beijing's achievements were attributed to the ancient capital's own efforts, it is widely felt in China that if the World Expo is a success, it will be claimed as a great achievement for the whole of the country. However, the rewards will be Shanghai's and the city has not been slow to ensure it will take full advantage of welcoming more than 100 million visitors over the next six months. Modern Shanghai has, of course, almost always been open to foreign influence since its "creation" by the British in the 19th century. It was only for 30 years-from the birth of Communist China in 1949 to the start of Deng Xiaoping's "opening up" reforms-that China's largest city was shielded from overseas influence. But ever since the Pudong district was earmarked to become China’s chief financial and commercial hub in 1990, the pace has been relentless. From 1990 to 2009, Pudong's gross domestic product (GDP) grew a miraculous 65 times. It is now a business base for around 600 international and Chinese financial institutions, and some 5,000 shipping and related companies. The municipal government recently announced the next phase of Pudong's evolution, to coincide with the 20-year anniversary of its development into a major business district. To give an idea of the scale of the development, it plans to invest CNY 100bn ($14.7bn) in urban infrastructure over the next three years, as compared with a total of CNY 270bn handed over in the past 20 years. Within this new blueprint, the area flanking the East China Sea has been designated as a major shipping and logistics zone. Governor of Pudong New Area Jiang Liang said: "We are standing at a fresh point to accelerate Pudong's development with so many opportunities in front of us. "We want to become a forerunner to propel Shanghai's development into a global financial and shipping centre. We need to pioneer the revamp of economic structures and differentiate our core competitiveness from other similar areas in Shenzhen and Tianjin." Jiang is, however, being a little modest in comparing Shanghai's ambitions with those of other domestic cities. Instead, it will be looking at competing with the likes of London, Singapore and Hong Kong-particularly in terms of shipping. While spacious East Pudong has been designated as an area where the government will seek to attract shipowners, service-related industries are choosing the more densely populated North Bund Shipping Cluster. This is where, in central Shanghai, the city aims to develop its dream of being a modern maritime hub by 2020. Shanghai already hosts the world's busiest dry-bulk port, handling 590 million tonnes of cargoes last year. It also had a throughput of 25 million teu of containers in 2009, making it the world's second-busiest boxship hub. But in terms of legal, financial and related support services, Shanghai is some years away from being considered a serious shipping player. However, the government recently set up tax breaks and other incentives for foreign companies wanting to come to the city. The legal system is also being modernised, which has given foreign players more peace of mind should problems arise in charter-party agreements with domestic owners. Furthermore, the global economic crisis has seen Chinese banks challenge their Western competitors and position themselves at the forefront of the international financial framework. It is becoming more frequent for global deals in any industry to originate in Shanghai. The city is no longer a satellite business hub but a financial business centre in its own right. The Expo is seen in Shanghai as a pivotal moment in history-a time when its cosmopolitan and modern characteristics will be put on show. So it is perhaps fitting that 60% of the Expo site, which straddles the Huangpu River to the east of central Shanghai, occupies the former premises of Jiangnan Shipyard (see pages 24 and 25). Jiangnan is often considered as the cradle of the Chinese shipbuilding sector, which is the backbone of the wider domestic industrial landscape. Shanghai's entry onto the grand stage is being engineered as its maritime sector explores more sophisticated ways of opening up to foreign influence. In 10 years'time, its maritime profile is likely to be much more than just shipbuilding and shipowning.

Shanghai base key to winning Chinese trust

PostTime:2010-04-23 08:13:37 View:571

The scope of Singapore-headquartered Navig8 may be global with offices also in London and Connecticut but it also has a strong focus on Asia. For the past two years, it has operated an office in Shanghai with a full Chinese staff. Navig8 chief investment and financial officer Modi Mano notes that this has gained the trust of Chinese companies. The company has products tankers from China Shipping, while major chemical-tanker player Ding Heng is also expected to join one of its pools. "There are so many shipping companies in China, so much depth in the market and a very entrepreneurial environment. You need to be there to be part of it. You can't walk in as an outsider," said Mano. Navig8 has formed strategic relationships with many leading Asian tanker players, including Hyundai Merchant Marine, Hanjin Tankers and MISC Malaysia, which has allowed it to secure many Asian contracts of affreightment (COAs). The company says Singapore is the best place to be headquartered as it enjoys a key location in Asia and provides all the necessary services and supports required by shipping companies. Mano also points out that the shipping downturn has had a silver lining for the company in its attempt to attract good-quality staff in Singapore. "It was very difficult to do this in 2006 and 2007. This was not because Singapore does not produce and attract talent. It was just because the state of the industry was so bubbly there just wasn't enough people to go around," he explained. Mano says Navig8 has been on a major recruitment drive as the company needs human capital to facilitate its growth. The industry down cycle has therefore provided it with what he describes as fantastic opportunities to recruit the best quality shipping talent.

Shanghai's Yangshan port to offer export tax refunds

PostTime:2010-02-02 07:52:54 View:514

THE Shanghai government has revealed that the China State Administration of Taxation and China Customs has devised an export tax rebate scheme to a start trial run in the Yangshan port area, reports Xinhua.At present, cargo originating in China can only receive tax refunds after reaching its destination, causing many shippers to choose transshipment through nearby Busan to speed up repayments. The new policy shortens the exporters' wait, said Shanghai Urban Construction and Transportation Commission spokesman Shen Xiaosu.According to deputy Director of Shanghai Customs Wen Xuexiang said, the new measure will possibly attract about three million TEU from northern China to transship through Shanghai, which previously transship in Busan.Mr Wen said Shanghai Customs will cooperate with Qingdao and Wuhan government on extending the tax refund service to exports from the two cites. The three customs authorities have drafted administration and supervision measures that await government approval.

Shanghai aims lower GDP growth but better quality

PostTime:2010-01-27 19:12:52 View:575

SHANGHAI: China's economic hub Shanghai has lowered its annual growth target for gross domestic product (GDP) from nine percent last year to eight percent as the city hopes to improve the quality of local economy and secure a steady recovery.The proposal was made by Mayor Han Zheng at the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress opened here on Tuesday and is to be reviewed by local legislators.Han said the city's GDP fell short of the nine percent projection and grew 8.2 percent last year."Shanghai's economy has embarked onto the track of steady recovery," he assured the legislature. "We are at a crucial period when industrial upgrading and economic rebalancing should be further enhanced."Among other projections proposed by the city government for this year is an eight percent rise in local fiscal revenue, a registered unemployment rate of 4.5 percent, environmental-protecting investment equivalent to three percent of the city's total GDP and research and development expenses from local finance up to 2.8 percent of its GDP.The city government also vowed to cut its energy consumption per GDP unit by 20 percent during the 11-th five year plan period ending this year.Han didn't specify the target for the year's consumer price index, a benchmark for retail inflation, only saying that the figure would be linked to the price control target of the central government.Han said that the Shanghai World Expo to be opened in May would bring the city both opportunities and challenges in economic development. "We will take a package of policies to make sure local economy will gradually recover quarter by quarter," he said.In 2009, Shanghai raked in 254.03 billion yuan in local revenue, up 7.7 percent from a year ago while the city's fixed investment rose by 9.2 percent to 527.33 billion yuan.Last year, Shanghai's consumer price index lowered by 0.4 percent from that of 2008 while retail sales of consumer products rose by 14 percent, he said.

Shanghai's first inland river container channel completed

PostTime:2010-01-15 08:05:36 View:756

EAST China's Shanghai port is accelerating construction of an inland river channel network, and its first project of the Sushen Channel is now in service, reports Xinhua. The new 65.7-kilometre channel links the Grand Canal to the west and Huangpu River to the east, or links from Jiangsu province to Shanghai. The Shanghai section is 35.5 kilometres with a 1,000-tonne vessel limitation. Shanghai began construction of the channel network in 2005, planning to complete four container streams by 2010, and by 2020 to build up one loop and 10 departure container channels over a network of 400 kilometres. A new 1.17-square kilometre inland river port area with a capacity of one million TEU will be added in 2020 and so will another 1.5-square kilometre port areas with an annual two million TEU capacity.