Shipping service operators have expressed concern that the US’ decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal could trigger a further rise in oil prices and raise operational costs.
Oil prices would be the key factor affecting Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp’s (陽明海運) profitability this year, company chairman Bronson Hsieh (謝志堅) said, adding that as of last month, oil prices had risen by an average of 20 percent from a year earlier.
US President Donald Trump last week announced that the US would pull out of a landmark deal that was designed to limit Iran’s nuclear capabilities, although the UK, France and Germany are to remain. Trump reinstated US sanctions that could curtail Iran’s ability to export oil.
It remains to be seen if Iran’s oil production will be affected by the US’ decision, but the US could increase its shale oil production to help balance oil prices, Hsieh said.
Hsieh made the comments on the sidelines of a news conference last week, at which the government announced that it aims to establish an overseas holding company in Singapore by October to develop shipping businesses in Southeast Asia.
It is difficult to estimate the effects from rising oil prices on Yang Ming, as factors such as cargo volume and cargo transportation service prices need to be taken into consideration, Hsieh said.
The global vessel tonnage supply is estimated to increase about 6 percent this year, whereas cargo volume could rise 5.1 percent from last year, Hsieh said, adding that as such, there is slightly more supply in the shipping industry than demand.
Yang Ming and several other global sea liners last month launched the THE Alliance, which aims to raise the berth utilization rate and lower transportation costs.
The company reported a net loss of NT$1.95 billion in the first quarter, a greater hit than the NT$901.5 million lost during the same period a year ago. It last year posted a net profit of NT$320.85 million, compared with a net loss of NT$14.91 billion in 2016.
KEEPING UP: The acquisition of a cleanroom in Taiwan would enable Micron to increase production in a market where demand continues to outpace supply, a Micron official said Micron Technology Inc has signed a letter of intent to buy a fabrication site in Taiwan from Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電) for US$1.8 billion to expand its production of memory chips. Micron would take control of the P5 site in Miaoli County’s Tongluo Township (銅鑼) and plans to ramp up DRAM production in phases after the transaction closes in the second quarter, the company said in a statement on Saturday. The acquisition includes an existing 12 inch fab cleanroom of 27,871m2 and would further position Micron to address growing global demand for memory solutions, the company said. Micron expects the transaction to
Vincent Wei led fellow Singaporean farmers around an empty Malaysian plot, laying out plans for a greenhouse and rows of leafy vegetables. What he pitched was not just space for crops, but a lifeline for growers struggling to make ends meet in a city-state with high prices and little vacant land. The future agriculture hub is part of a joint special economic zone launched last year by the two neighbors, expected to cost US$123 million and produce 10,000 tonnes of fresh produce annually. It is attracting Singaporean farmers with promises of cheaper land, labor and energy just over the border.
US actor Matthew McConaughey has filed recordings of his image and voice with US patent authorities to protect them from unauthorized usage by artificial intelligence (AI) platforms, a representative said earlier this week. Several video clips and audio recordings were registered by the commercial arm of the Just Keep Livin’ Foundation, a non-profit created by the Oscar-winning actor and his wife, Camila, according to the US Patent and Trademark Office database. Many artists are increasingly concerned about the uncontrolled use of their image via generative AI since the rollout of ChatGPT and other AI-powered tools. Several US states have adopted
A proposed billionaires’ tax in California has ignited a political uproar in Silicon Valley, with tech titans threatening to leave the state while California Governor Gavin Newsom of the Democratic Party maneuvers to defeat a levy that he fears would lead to an exodus of wealth. A technology mecca, California has more billionaires than any other US state — a few hundred, by some estimates. About half its personal income tax revenue, a financial backbone in the nearly US$350 billion budget, comes from the top 1 percent of earners. A large healthcare union is attempting to place a proposal before
RSS