[300420.EN.SEA] World's 1st 24,000 TEU to Sail on THE Alliances' Asia-Europe Service Under HMM

HMM is to launch the world's first 24,000 TEU containership, the HMM Algeciras - one of twelve 24,000 TEU box ships that the carrier currently has on order from two shipyards in South Korea, DSME and SHI.

Having become a member of THE Alliance on April 1, the South Korean box ship operator officially dropped its former name Hyundai Merchant Marine, Co in favour of HMM, Co.

President Bae Jae Hoon said the goal is to "expand its presence in the global shipping industry based on optimised fleet management and new cooperation with THE Alliance", reported gcaptain.

The ship was officially named during a private ceremony at the Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) shipyard in South Korea.

The HMM Algeciras measures 399.9 metres in length and has a beam of 61 metres. With a nominal TEU capacity of 23,964, the vessel was ordered in September 2018 as part of an order for 20 mega ships split among South Korea's 'Big 3' shipyards - DSME, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI).

HMM Algeciras is the first of seven being constructed by DSME for HMM, while SHI is building the other five. All twelve are scheduled to be delivered this year.

HHI is constructing eight ships of 16,000 TEU to be delivered in the second quarter of 2021.

HMM Algeciras will be deployed on THE Alliances's Far East Europe 4 (FE4) service with a port rotation of: Qingdao, Busan, Ningbo, Shanghai, Yantian, Suez Canal, Rotterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp and London, followed by Singapore via the Suez Canal.

"It is very meaningful that HMM takes delivery of the most technologically-advanced container in this difficult time. I would like to celebrate it and hope that HMM continues to secure a competitive advantage as a Korean national flagship carrier," said South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

Source : HKSG.

[300420.ID.BIZ] BUMN Transportasi Pastikan Tak Ada PHK Karyawan

Jakarta, CNN Indonesia -- Badan Usaha Milik Negara (BUMN) sektor transportasi memastikan tak melakukan Pemutusan Hubungan Kerja (PHK) karyawan meskipun kondisi perusahaan tertekan akibat pandemi covid-19. Selain itu, mereka tetap memberikan Tunjangan Hari Raya (THR) kepada karyawan.

Direktur Utama PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk Irfan Setiaputra mengakui pandemi memberikan pukulan besar bagi arus kas perseroan. Namun, alih-alih melakukan PHK ia mengaku Garuda Indonesia akan melakukan berbagai upaya pemulihan dampak pandemi. Termasuk, kata dia, penundaan pembayaran kepada pihak ketiga dan opsi restrukturisasi pembayaran.

"PHK adalah opsi terakhir, kalau relaksasi finansial kami bisa peroleh, kami tentu saja bisa menghindari ini dan mengambil alternatif lebih bijak bagi seluruh keluarga besar Garuda Indonesia," ujarnya dalam rapat virtual bersama Komisi VI, Rabu (29/4).

Selain itu, ia memastikan Garuda Indonesia tetap memberikan Tunjangan Hari Raya (THR) bagi karyawan mereka. Penghapusan THR hanya berlaku bagi jajaran direksi dan komisaris sesuai arahan Menteri BUMN Erick Thohir.

Namun, di satu sisi maskapai pelat merah itu telah memotong gaji karyawan dari level direksi, komisaris hingga staf pada rentang 10 persen-50 persen.

"Kami berkomitmen untuk tetap memberikan THR," katanya.

Dalam kesempatan yang sama, Direktur Utama PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Persero) Edi Sukmoro menyatakan perseroan tak melakukan PHK bagi karyawan mereka. KAI juga tetap memberikan gaji utuh dan THR bagi seluruh pekerja.

"Gaji tetap dibayarkan utuh, THR juga tetap kami berikan. Hanya untuk direksi dan komisaris arahan dari Kementerian BUMN kami tidak akan menerima THR," katanya.

Edi mengakui kemunculan pandemi mengurangi jumlah penumpang signifikan. Pada Januari, rata-rata penumpang harian KAI mencapai 1,27 juta orang, lalu anjlok menjadi hanya 275 ribu pada Maret. Penurunan ini ikut menyeret pendapatan perseroan dari Rp1,88 triliun di Januari menjadi hanya Rp1,54 triliun pada Maret.

Senada, Direktur Utama PT Pelayaran Nasional Indonesia (Pelni) Purwarisya L Tobing memastikan perusahaan tak akan melakukan PHK kepada karyawan.

"Tidak ada PHK sampai saat ini, gaji dan THR tetap kecuali direksi dan komisaris," ucapnya.

Sebelumnya, Menteri BUMN Erick Thohir memutuskan untuk meniadakan atau menghapus pemberian tunjangan hari raya kepada para direksi dan dewan komisaris perusahaan pada Lebaran 2020 ini. Penghapusan tersebut tertuang dalam Surat Nomor S-255/MBU/04/2020 tentang THR bagi Direksi dan Dewan Komisaris BUMN Tahun 2020.

Dalam surat tertanggal 17 April 2020 tersebut, Erick mengatakan penghapusan THR tersebut dilakukan berkaitan dengan perkembangan penyebaran virus corona yang belakangan ini semakin meluas.

"Kami memandang perlu segera dilakukan langkah guna meminimalisasi dampak bagi keuangan BUMN dan peningkatan kepekaan dan kesadaran sosial para pejabat BUMN dalam menghadapi kondisi nasional tersebut," katanya.

Sumber : CNN Indonesia, 29.04.2020.

[290420.EN.SEA] Maersk Embroiled in Legal Battle to Move From New York to Port Elizabeth

GLOBAL Container Terminals (GCT), the operator of the facility on Staten Island in New York, is seeking an emergency restraining order through the law courts to stop Maersk Line and Hamburg Sud from leaving and switching over to the nearby port Elizabeth in New Jersey, a site operated by AP Moller-Maersk subsidiary, APM Terminals (APMT).

Maersk said in a letter on April 10 that Maersk Line and Hamburg Sud vessels would stop calling at GCT New York by May 1. It said it was willing to pay a settlement of US$5.5 million, including an early termination fee of $2.1 million and additional consideration of $3.4 million.

GCT USA president John Atkins claimed in a court filing that its agreement with Maersk lasted until December 31, 2022, and could be terminated at the earliest on December 31, 2021, and provided if six months' notice is given, reported New York's FreightWaves.

Mr Atkins said the termination notice was sent without cause 20 months before it was allowed on "the Good Friday public holiday... in the midst of the ongoing Covid-19 emergency in the metropolitan area... [with] a mere 20 days' prior notice in the middle of an unprecedented and crippling global pandemic."

He said: "The timing could not be worse with social distancing and stay-at-home directives in place and attendant concerns about the spread of infections making an emergency management response... extremely difficult."

He alleged that Maersk and Hamburg Sud are attempting to move to port Elizabeth "for the financial benefit of their sister company, APMT, which is a direct competitor of GCT," and that Maersk's "reprehensible conduct [its early contract termination] is magnified by the fact that Maersk is essentially stealing business from GCT to give to its own corporate affiliate, APMT".

He said the services operated by Maersk and Hamburg Sud through GCT's Staten Island site account for 60 per cent of the terminal's ocean container business and 46 per cent of all box throughput including local barge business. Maersk's departure "will have immediate and catastrophic effects on the business and financial well-being of GCT and its employees".

Mr Atkins maintained that GCT is one of the top employees on Staten Island and the early loss of Maersk's business would put all of Staten Island longshoreman jobs "at risk as it jeopardizes the viability of GCT's business".

GCT alleged in its complaint that the Maersk action could cause the Staten Island terminal to "cease to be a going concern" and would "reverberate through the Staten Island economy and have adverse tax-revenue effects for the city and state of New York".

Asked by FreightWaves for a response to the allegations in the court filing, a Maersk spokesman sent a written statement. "Maersk can confirm that it is currently involved in an ongoing contract dispute with Global Container Terminals," the statement said. "We can also confirm that Global Container Terminals alleged in its lawsuit that if Maersk ceases to call [at] Global Container Terminals that Global Container Terminals will cease to be a going concern.

"We believe claims that Global Container Terminals, which is owned by multi-billion-dollar investment funds, will go out of business as a result of this contract dispute to be intentionally inflated to create unnecessary fear during this time of uncertainty and the product of a litigation strategy to distract from the contractual rights and remedies that Global Container Terminals previously negotiated and now regrets," said Maersk.

Vancouver-based GCT operates four terminals, two in British Columbia and two in the US (in Staten Island and Bayonne, New Jersey). It is owned by three very large institutional investors: the Ontario Teachers' Pension Fund owns 37.5 per cent, IMF Investors owns 37.5 per cent and British Columbia Investment Management 25 per cent. These three entities have aggregate funds under management totalling $534 billion.

In its termination letter, Maersk said its $2.1 million termination fee was "a generous estimate given the uncertainty related to Covid-19", on top of which it was offering the "additional consideration" of $3.4 million to "satisfy all obligations".

The termination fee calculation relates to volume credits that would have been issued. Mr Atkins countered that "this termination fee is not intended as a proxy for damages that GCT may suffer as a result of any breach by Maersk resulting in premature termination; instead, it is to refund the volume discounts which were solely provided to Maersk in exchange for extending the term of the agreement to December 31, 2022.

"If not for these promises and commitments from Maersk, GCT would not have reciprocally agreed to the volume discount programme and favourable contract rates set forth in the [2018] amendment."

Source : HKSG.

[290420.ID.BIZ] McDonald's: Saat Ini Berbeda Dari Tahun-tahun Sebelumnya Karena Covid-19

KONTAN.CO.ID - JAKARTA. PT Rekso Nasional Food, pengelola jaringan restoran McDonald's Indonesia belum bisa membuka performa kenaikan tren penjualan pada masa Ramadan.

Namun demikian, Associate Director of Communications McDonald’s Indonesia Sutji Lantyka berkata, saat ini kondisi yang dihadapi perseroan berbeda dengan tahun-tahun sebelumnya karena PSBB dan COVID-19.

"Kami belum bisa menjawab hal tersebut, karena Ramadan baru berjalan beberapa hari dan kondisinya saat ini berbeda dengan tahun-tahun sebelumnya karena adanya COVID-19," jelasnya saat dihubungi Kontan.co.id, Rabu (29/4).

Ia menambahkan, saat ini semua industri mengalami masalah yang sama. Mewabahnya COVID-19 ditambah dengan kebijakan PSBB, membuat kebanyakan orang lebih memilih untuk berdiam di rumah.

Menghadapi situasi tersebut, pihaknya saat ini fokus pada layanan bersifat contactless melalui pesan antar (delivery) dan drive thru bagi konsumen yang tidak ingin keluar rumah.

"Restoran McDonald’s tetap buka untuk melayani pembelian lewat take away, drive thru dan delivery (McDelivery dan GoFood/GrabFood). Yang kami tutup adalah layanan makan di tempat (dine-in), dan ini sudah kami lakukan secara sukarela sejak tanggal 1 April, sebelum PSBB diberlakukan," lanjutnya.

Sementara itu, melansir pemberitaan Kontan.co.id sebelumnya, Direktur IT dan Keuangan McDonald’s Yanti Lawidjaja mengatakan, melalui pembayaran digital non tunai dari aplikasi Youtap, McDonald's menuai kenaikan transaksi drive thru secara signifikan di masa pandemi.

“Dengan transaksi yang cepat dan aman melalui solusi Youtap ini, McDonald’s juga melihat kenaikan yang signifikan untuk penggunaan nontunai pada transaksi drive thru di masa pandemi,” kata Yanti dalam keterangan tertulis Rabu, (15/4) lalu.

Sumber : Kontan, 29.04.2020.

[280420.EN.AIR] World Governments Lack Coordination To Keep Air Cargo Moving: IATA

THE International Air Transport Association (IATA) says governments need to improve international coordination to keep air cargo flowing amid the coronavirus pandemic.

IATA said delays in permit approvals, quarantine measures for air cargo crew and not enough support on the ground continue to hamper the movement of cargo flights carrying vital medical supplies and other necessities.

"Governments need to step up and ensure that vital supply lines remain open and efficient and that there is adequate infrastructure and support available in the air and on the ground,"said IATA cargo chief Glyn Hughes.

Many governments and international regulatory bodies are facilitating the movement of air cargo. The European Commission issued Guidelines on Facilitating Air Cargo Operations During Covid-19 Outbreak, the IATA press release.

The World Customs Organisation (WCO) has implemented a series of emergency contacts to ensure cargo border blockages can be responded to immediately, and the UN's International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has issued a series of state letters urging member states to further facilitate air cargo flows during this time of crisis.

But there are still too many examples of delays in getting charter permits issued, a lack of exemptions on covid-19 testing for air cargo crew, and inadequate ground infrastructure to/from and within airport environments.

IATA is urging governments to: cut the paperwork for charter operations; exempt cargo crew from quarantine rules that apply to the general population; ensure there is adequate staff and facilities to process cargo efficiently; mutually recognise agreed global standards (health certificates, licenses, etc.); and ensure alternate airports are available even if passenger flights are not operating.

"To keep cargo flights operating safely, airlines need access to alternate airports along all routes. These alternate airports are where aircraft can land in the event of an emergency during flight. Because of the sharp drop in passenger flights, some airports that serve the critical alternate airport function are closed or not available at all times.

"A coordinated effort by governments to keep alternate airports operational is needed. If not, the global air cargo network cannot function and vital shipments are at risk,"said Mr Hughes.

IATA predicts airlines will suffer up revenue losses of US$314 billion for 2020 due to coronavirus pandemic. AAPA says Asia-Pacific traffic was down 93 per cent in first week of April as borders remain closed. IATA also highlighted that 25 million jobs would be at risk as air travel shuts down.

Source : HKSG.

[280420.ID.BIZ] Masih Ragu Pungut Pajak E-commerce

KONTAN.CO.ID-JAKARTA Direktorat Jenderal (Ditjen) Pajak Kementerian Keuangan (Kemkeu) terus memutar otak menggali penerimaan pajak di tengah pandemi Covid-19,  Salah satunya, rencana pemajakan atas perusahaan berbasis digital dalam maupun luar negeri.

Pungutan pajak terhadap industri e-commerce berlandaskan Peraturan Pemerintah Pengganti Undang Undang (Perpu) Nomor 1 Tahun 2020 tentang Kebijakan Keuangan Negara dan Stabilitas Sistem Keuangan untuk Penanganan Pandemi Corona Virus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) dalam Rangka Menghadapi Ancaman yang Membahayakan Perekonomian Nasional dan Stabilitas Sistem Keuangan. Beleid ini mengatur pajak pertambahan nilai (PPN) dan pajak penghasilan (PPh) dalam perdagangan menggunakan sistem elektronik (PMSE) alias e-commerce.

Direktur Perpajakan Internasional Ditjen Pajak Kemkeu John Hutagaol bilang, untuk menindaklanjuti Perpu, pemerintah menyiapkan peraturan pemerintah (PP) sebagai payung hukum pemungutan PPh dan atau pajak transaksi elektronik (PTE) dalam PMSE.

PP itu sembari menunggu konsensus The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) tentang ekonomi digital. John bilang, pengenaan pajak atas penghasilan dari kegiatan digital ekonomi bisa menimbulkan pengenaan pajak berganda. Makanya pemerintah menunggu konsensus global.

"Oleh karena itu disepakati solusi jangka panjang, pada akhir 2020 untuk menghasilkan konsensus global memajaki penghasilan dari ekonomi digital berupa penentuan hak pemajakan nexus dan mengalokasikan laba global secara fairness ke yurisdiksi pasar sumber dan yurisdiksi domisili," katanya kepada KONTAN, Minggu (26/4).

Walaupun jadwal akhir konsensus internasional semakin dekat, nampaknya kesepakatan tersebut akan tertunda. Sebab, pandemi Covid-19 mengakibatkan beberapa agenda pertemuan terpaksa dibatalkan dan sebagian lagi ditunda termasuk kemungkinan jadwal the Inclusive Framework (IF) on Base Erosion and Profit Shiftinga (BEPS) pada awal Juli 2020 di Berlin.

"Berdasarkan hal-hal di atas, penerapan PPN atas PMSE luar negeri akan lebih diprioritaskan," tambahnya.

Pengamat Pajak Danny Darussalam Tax Center (DDTC) Bawono Kristiaji mengatakan, langkah Indonesia membuat unilateral measure melalui konsep significant economic presence sejatinya sudah ada dalam usulan konsensus global terkait pajak digital.

Jika konsensus tidak tercapai maka konsep BUT akan tetap seperti yang tertuang di kebanyakan tax treaty, yaitu kehadiran secara fisik. "Dalam skenario itu Indonesia bisa menggunakan pajak transaksi elektronik merujuk India dan Inggris," kata Bawono.

Sumber : Kontan, 28.04.2020.

[270420.EN.SEA] 2M Voids 2 Asia-US Gulf Sailings, as Top 10 US Ports See Imports Dive

2M alliance partners Maersk Line and Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) have blanked two more sailings from Asia to the US Gulf, in response to "further reduction in demand".

The 5,048-TEU MSC Nerissa deployed on the 2M's TP88/Pelican Asia-US east coast loop, on which Zim is also a vessel provider and which it dubs ZGX, will be held in China next week, as will the 5,048-TEU MSC Ans in week 20.

According to eeSea data, the pro forma capacity for the loop is between 18,500 TEU and 23,000 TEU per month.

The loop turns on calls at Mobile, Tampa and Houston in the US where the MSC Nerissa was scheduled to arrive on May 31, reported London's Loadstar.

According to Blue Alpha Capital's first-quarter port throughput data of the top 10 US container ports, last month Houston saw a 19.4 per cent decline in import containers, compared with the same month last year, to 88,302 TEU, and a 2.9 per cent quarter-on-quarter reduction to 293,272 TEU.

Overall import volumes for the US east coast ports were down by 11.6 per cent in March to 688,869 TEU, and fell by 3.1 per cent for the first quarter at 2,251,459 TEU.

The sudden drop in demand led the Port of Virginia to close one of its three container terminals last week.

The strongest performer on the east coast was New York/New Jersey, which recorded a modest 1.3 per cent drop in throughput last month to 279,358 TEU, overtaking Los Angeles as the largest US container port for imports that month, and its Q1 figure was unchanged on 2019 with imports of 902,903 TEU.

Total imports through west coast ports decreased by 17.7 per cent in March to 605,895 TEU, and by 12.9 per cent over the first quarter to 2,195,181 TEU.

Los Angeles saw import volumes collapse by 25.9 per cent last month to 220,225 TEU, reducing its throughput performance in the first quarter by 15.8 per cent on the previous year to 905,011 TEU.

"What started as supply-related disruption in China has now grown into demand- and supply-related disruption across the world," said Mr McCown.

"The impact on inbound container volumes into the US this month will be mitigated by a backlog of containers moving out of China in March. However, the underlying trends are negative, and we will see larger declines driven by the health crisis," he said.

Mr McCown warned: "In my view, there will be neither a v-shaped or u-shaped recovery in container volumes. This crisis will result in structural changes, leading to permanent change."

Source : HKSG.

[270420.ID.BIZ] Pabrik VW Kembali Berproduksi, Merek Lain Segera Mengikuti

Bisnis.com, JAKARTA - Produsen otomotif asal Jerman, Volkswagen hari ini Senin (27/4/2020) kembali mengoperasikan pabriknya di Wolfsburg, Jerman, sejalan dengan kebijakan pelonggaran aturan penguncian setelah serangan virus corona mereda.

VW yang merupakan produsen mobil terbesar dunia merayakan pembukaan kembali pabrik terbesarnya di Wolfsburg dengan menampilkan kartun virus corona yang sedang terjepit.

Sebagai bagian dari kartun Volkswagen, logo VW merayakan dengan menghadirkan "jempol" setelah Jerman berhasil mengatasi virus corona.

"Pada Senin, industri mobil Jerman kembali. Kami di Volkswagen telah menggunakan jeda 5 pekan untuk mempersiapkan diri untuk memulai kembali produksi," kata Ketua Dewan Kerja VW Bernd Osterloh seperti dikutip Reuters, Senin (27/4/2020).

Mempertimbangkan penurunan tingkat infeksi, Jerman telah mengizinkan toko ritel kecil dibuka kembali, dengan syarat mematuhi aturan menjaga jarak dan kebersihan. Sekarang perusahaan besar pun mengikuti.

Produsen otomotif Jerman seperti BMW, Daimler, dan VW sangat mengandalkan kemampuan pemerintah Jerman melacak wabah virus corona baru, dan sistem perawatan kesehatan yang mampu melakukan pengujian ekstensif untuk mengidentifikasi kemungkinan pembawa penyakit.

Hal ini sangat kontras dengan di Amerika Serikat, di mana kepala Serikat Pekerja Auto mengatakan pada Kamis (23/4/2020) waktu setempat bahwa "terlalu cepat dan terlalu berisiko" untuk membuka kembali pabrik mobil pada awal Mei.

Pabrik-pabrik di Eropa telah mengubah pola kerja, mereka memasukkan prosedur kebersihan yang lebih ketat serta interval jarak antar pekerja yang lebih memberikan rasa yang aman.

BMW mengatakan akan memulai manufaktur mesin pada Senin ini. BMW juga ingin membuka kembali pabrik mereka di Inggris di Goodwood dan Spartanburg, South Carolina pada 4 Mei dan diikuti oleh Dingolfing, Jerman, dan San Luis Potosi di Meksiko pada 11 Mei, tergantung pada permintaan pasar.

Pabrik lain di Leipzig, Regensburg, dan Rosslyn Afrika Selatan akan dibuka setelah 18 Mei, dimulai dengan sistem satu shift. Pabrik BMW di Shenyang, China telah berproduksi sejak 17 Februari lalu.

Dalam keadaan seperti saat ini, para pekerja diwajibkan untuk memakai masker hidung dan menjaga jarak satu sama lain. Pesanan untuk tempat duduk pada bus di pabrik BMW juga telah diubah, seperti halnya proses masuk dan keluar dari bus.

"Para pekerja dianjurkan sudah menggunakan seragam ketika mereka berbondong-bondong datang ke pabrik, untuk menghindari waktu terjebak dalam ruang ganti, dan jalur yang ditentukan di pabrik telah diubah untuk memastikan ada lalu lintas "satu arah" saja," kata BMW.

Selain itu, pabrik Mercedes-Benz yang berada di Sindelfingen dan Bremen, Jerman. Saat ini, juga sedang membuat persiapan untuk meningkatkan produksi mereka kembali.

Tidak seperti di Italia dan Spanyol, Jerman tidak pernah melarang produksi mobil meskipun pabrik terhenti setelah pihak berwenang membatasi pergerakan orang dan memerintahkan penutupan diler mobil.

Dikabarkan juga, FiatChrysler akan segera membuka pabrik mereka di Sevel, Italia tengah pada Senin, dengan rencana untuk melanjutkan produksi mereka pada tingkat antara 70 persen-80 persen.

Di Prancis, Toyota pada minggu ini juga dikabarkan akan memulai kembali produksi di pabrik perakitan Valenciennes dan Renault mulai memproduksi mesin di pabriknya di Cleon, sebelah barat Paris.

Ini akan diikuti oleh pabrik Flins Renault, sebelah barat Paris, di mana hanya 25 persen dari tenaga kerja akan melanjutkan pekerjaan.

Volvo Cars, produsen otomotif asal Swedia juga dikabarkan akan segera membuka kembali pabrik mereka yang berada di Torslanda pekan ini setelah merombak proses produksinya.

"Ekonomi telah berhenti di Eropa. Vaksin akan memakan waktu yang lama. Penting untuk memulai kembali dengan cara yang aman. Semoga kita dapat berkontribusi untuk normalisasi," kata Chief Executive mobil Volvo, Hakan Samuelsson kepada Reuters.

Sumber : Bisnis, 27.04.2020.

[260420.EN.BIZ] 'China Will Lead US$1.5 Billion Autonomous Shipping Market by 2025'

CHINA will lead all nations in the development and implementation of autonomous shipping within five years, a research report by technology and innovation consultancy Thetius predicts.

Thetius analysts calculated the maritime autonomous surface shipping market will grow by seven per cent per year to US$1.5 billion by 2025.

Researchers unearthed 3,000 patents relating to autonomous shipping technology worldwide. They found 96 per cent of these were registered in China, reported London's Riviera Maritime Media.

Most of those patents were registered in the last five years by a small group of Chinese universities and private companies, says Thetius director Nick Chubb.

"The incredible amount of recent patent activity indicates significant research and development funding has been made available to Chinese researchers building the next generation of autonomous shipping technology,"said Mr Chubb. "The Chinese government is highly supportive of the sector, having recently set up a 777 km2 autonomous shipping testbed in Guangdong."

In this testbed site, Zhuhai-based technology group Yunzhou Tech completed trials with autonomous cargo ship Jin Dou Yun 0 Hao in December 2019.

This 12.9 metre vessel carried a cargo from Dong Ao island, Guangdong province, to a pier by the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao bridge. It was operated by automatic navigation technology and remote control, and powered from an electrical plant.

Jin Dou Yun 0 Hao is seen as a platform for advancing the technological progress and industrial development of intelligent ships in China. Yunzhou Tech said it would further test this vessel and look for commercial operators and applications.

Also in December 2019, Qingdao-based smart ship technology group Navigation Brilliance contracted Yangfan Shipbuilding's Qingdao Shipyard to construct 300-TEU autonomous container ship, Zhi Fei, for shortsea operations from the third quarter 2021.

This ship is being developed by Navigation Brilliance in conjunction with Dalian Maritime University and China Waterborne Transport Research Institute.

Yunzhou Tech has also partnered with Zhuhai Port Shipping to develop unmanned cargo ships, which could lead to more shipyard orders this decade.

Zhuhai port plans to expand its river and coastal cargo transportation fleet after raising US$145 million in May 2019. It intends to spend this cash on a fleet of 50 vessels, including newbuildings and potentially autonomous vessels.

Source : HKSG. 

[260420.ID.BIZ] Trump Disebut Miliki Utang Jutaan Dolar AS ke Bank di China

Jakarta, CNN Indonesia -- Presiden Amerika Serikat (AS) Donald Trump disebut memiliki utang puluhan juta dolar AS ke Bank milik Pemerintah China yang jatuh tempo pada 2022. Kabar tersebut disampaikan Politico, perusahaan opini politik Amerika yang berbasis di Arlington County, Virginia.

Mereka menyatakan utang itu dipergunakan untuk membiayai properti milik trump di Manhattan, AS pada 2012 silam. Properti tersebut diperkirakan memiliki nilai hampir US$1 miliar.

"Utang itu berasal dari 30 persen saham yang dimiliki presiden AS di gedung bernilai miliaran dolar di Avenue of the Americas di Manhattan," kata mereka seperti dikutip dari laporannya Sabtu (25/4).

Kepemilikan Trump atas bangunan itu mendapat sedikit perhatian sebelum dan sesudah kampanye Pemilihan Presiden pada 2016 lalu. Namun sebagian besar publik tidak mengetahui perihal hubungan Trump dengan Bank China, hingga pada Sabtu (18/4) lalu, Trump mengatakan bahwa "China akan memiliki Amerika Serikat" jika Joe Biden terpilih pada bulan November mendatang.

Seperti diketahui, Joe Biden yang disebut Trump merupakan mantan wakil Presiden AS. Ia kini menjadi rival Trump dari Partai Demokrat pada Pemilihan Presiden pada November 2020.

Trump mengklaim jika Bidan dan China memiliki hubungan yang 'halus'. China sejauh ini sangat terlibat dalam kerajaan bisnis Trump. Sebuah perusahaan konstruksi milik China membantu membangun Trump World Golf Club di Dubai.

Selain itu Beijing juga telah memberikan merek dagang kepada bisnis milik anak perempuan Trump, Ivanka. Pendekatan Trump ke China telah berganti-ganti antara agresif dan aman, terutama dalam kaitannya dengan presiden China, Xi Jinping, yang menurut Trump memiliki hubungan erat dengannya.

Selain itu, Trump telah menunjukkan sikap lunaknya pada China sejak awal pandemi virus corona (covid-19) lalu. Dalam sebuah cuitan di akun Twitternya, ia memuji China atas kegigihannya melawan virus corona.

"China telah bekerja sangat keras untuk mengendalikan virus corona. Amerika Serikat sangat menghargai upaya dan transparansi mereka. Itu semua akan bekerja dengan baik. Khususnya, atas nama Rakyat Amerika, saya ingin mengucapkan terima kasih kepada Presiden Xi! " tulis Trump.

Pernyataan itu mengundang respons sebagian orang. Seorang jurnalis the Washington Post Isaac Stone Fish menulis dalam cuitan akun twitternya,

Bank China adalah bank milik negara dan di kendalikan oleh Dewan Negara China yang merupakan badan administrasi China yang diketuai oleh Perdana Menteri Li Keqiang.

Atas pinjaman Trump, ia mengkhawatirkan jika hal tersebut dapat menjadikan konflik kepentingan seperti bagaimana jika China membatalkan pinjaman atau meminta Trump membayar pinjaman lebih awal.

"Saya mempelajari pengaruh Beijing terhadap Amerika, dan ini adalah konflik kepentingan yang paling bermasalah yang pernah saya lihat," kata dia.

"Apakah ini sebabnya Trump sering memuji Ketua Tiongkok Xi Jinping? Apakah ini yang menyebabkan dia meremehkan kebijakan atau pernyataan publiknya sendiri? Ini menimbulkan banyak pertanyaan," lanjut Isaac.

Sumber : CNN Indonesia, 26.04.2020.

[250420.EN.BIZ] Coronavirus Counter Measures Could Drive 'Catastrophic Drop' in Rates

SEA-INTELLIGENCE data analysis shows that within the past week the number of blank deep-sea sailings rose from 45 to 212, with multiple services with cancellations lasting until the end of June. Most void sailings are clustered within the coming five to six weeks.

The largest capacity withdrawal is seen in the Asia-Europe trade "where we will now enter a four-week period with 29-34 per cent of the capacity having been removed from the market", a company statement said.

It warned that the financial impact on shipping lines could also be "profound, although the magnitude to a large degree depends on the carriers' pricing discipline going forward.

"In the most benign scenario, the carriers experience a 10 per cent volume decline in 2020 due to the pandemic, but manage to prevent any material decline in freight rates. In this case, their profits will decline by US$6 billion compared to 2019 and cause all main carriers combined to lose $0.8 billion this year.

"In the worst case the carriers will see freight rates decline to the same degree they experienced during the financial crisis in 2009. In this case the main carriers will collectively lose a staggering $23 billion in 2020.

"It is therefore clear that the primary purpose of the capacity reductions should be seen as an effort to prevent a catastrophic drop in rate levels. The cost savings are also important, as they too are measured in the billions, but pale in comparison to the impact declining rate levels will have.

"Hence the development in freight rates will be important in the coming weeks, as that will determine the degree to which we will see even more aggressive capacity reductions," said

Source : HKSG / Photo : DHL Logistics.

[250420.ID.BIZ] Cegah Penyebaran Corona, Plaza Indonesia Tutup Sementara Mulai 25 Maret-3 April 2020

KONTAN.CO.ID - JAKARTA. Guna mendukung upaya pemerintah mengurangi penyebaran virus korona (COVID-19), PT Plaza Indonesia Realty Tbk (PLIN) pengelola mall Plaza Indonesia menutup sementara pusat perbelanjaan mulai dari 25 Maret sampai 3 April 2020.

Berdasarkan keterangan resmi yang diterima Kontan, Senin (23/3), pihaknya masih tetap membuka toko yang melayani kebutuhan dasar yang berada di level basement seperti, TheFoodHall Supermarket, Guardian, GNC, Century & Natural Farm, Maybank, lalu Money Changer BBC & Dua Sisi, dan semua ATM.

"Sebelum tanggal 25 Maret, kami akan tetap beroperasi agar dapat melayani kebutuhan customer dengan jam operasional, mulai dari pukul 11.00 pagi sampai 17.00 sore," ungkap Stella Kohdong, General Manager Tenant Comm. Relations, Customer Service & SQA PLIN, Senin (23/3).

Selanjutnya, pihaknya akan menginformasikan lebih lanjut mengenai pembukaan kembali Mall pada 4 April 2020 mendatang. "Waktu operasional akan diinformasikan kembali," ujarnya.

Sumber : Kontan, 23.04.2020.

[240420.EN.SEA] Threat of Bankruptcy Looms Over Container Shipping Sector as Outlook Dims

ALPHALINER is warning that the risk of another major shipping line going bankruptcy has heightened amid the deteriorating global economic outlook.

It explained that the unprecedented amount of capacity withdrawn in April and May, a result of a collapse in demand, "will hurt carriers' operating cash flows and further weaken their fragile balance sheets".

Picking up on the ocean liner Altman Z-scores, as at the end of December last year, for the 11 largest carriers that publish results - excluding Japanese merged carrier ONE - the consultant painted a gloomy picture of the financial health of the liner industry.

Altman Z-scores are a measure of the likelihood of insolvency for a container shipping line, and range from lower than 1.8 as "very high", to 3.0 or higher as "unlikely".

Four carriers - Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk Line, OOCL and Wan Hai Lines- had Z-scores of 1.72 to 1.92 points, with a score of 1.8 to 2.7 regarded as a "high risk", according to the index. And, worryingly, the other seven carriers had scores of less than 1.3.

"Carriers with track records of negative earnings are also particularly at risk, with three carriers' Z-scores HMM, Yang Ming and Zim ?lowered due to their negative retained earnings," said Alphaliner.

Since the end of March, credit rating agency Moody's has changed the credit outlook for Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk, MOL and NYK from 'stable to "negative" and placed CMA CGM's credit rating "under review" for potential downgrades.

It said Moody's had highlighted the high dependency of carriers on world trade and industrial and consumer demand, which would all be negatively impacted by covid-19 restrictions.

Source : HKSG.