BERNHARD SCHULTE SHIPMANAGEMENT (CHINA) COMPANY LIMITED

Marine Highways Gain Traction in the Intermodal Supply Chain.In the United States, landside infrastructure is at a crisis point. Congestion at the big hub ports, exacerbated by imperfect intermodal interfaces with surface transport serving cargo hinterlands is at the heart of the matter. As politicians bicker over a possible infrastructure package, the Highway Trust Fund, funded by taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel, has continued its downward journey towards further deficits (now $144 billion). And, where countless U.S. ports have reported record TEU volumes, an October 2018 report by the American Transportation Research Institute pegged the annual cost of congestion to the U.S.

Oil prices jumped more than 2% on Friday, October 11, 2019, after Iranian media said a state-owned oil tanker had been struck by missiles in the Red Sea near Saudi Arabia, raising the prospect of supply disruptions weeks after attacks on Saudi oil plants.The Suezmax crude tanker Sabiti was ablaze and suffered heavy damage after being hit by two missiles, Iranian media reported.Both oil benchmarks recorded their biggest daily rise since Sept. 16, the first trading day after the attacks on Saudi installations pushed oil prices up around 20%.International benchmark Brent crude futures were up$1.39, or around 2.4%, at $60.49 a barrel by 0829 GMT.U.S.

Maritime autonomous surface ship (“MASS”) technology continues to advance at a rapid pace around the globe. Although it’s not being embraced as quickly in the United States commercial market as other parts of the world, U.S. industry professionals and regulators look forward to continued development and implementation as a means to improve efficiency and safety.OpportunitiesThe U.S. Maritime Administration (“MARAD”) hosted “Achieving Critical MASS: Spotlight on the U.S. Vessel Automation Industry” July 22 and 23, 2019, encouraging discussion between U.S. industry leaders and automation technology providers.

Connectivity is the backbone of modern maritime operations as ships and boats at sea increasingly become connected. We recently met with Martin Kits van Heyningen, CEO, KVH, to discuss the evolution of communication in the maritime sector and so much more, as KVH is diverse and engaged in a number of markets -- including autonomy for 10 years with work on about 30 different  platforms for self-driving vehicles.To start, give us a “State of KVH” today.We started originally in the leisure market, and we have about 85% market share for leisure and small craft, but over the last 10 years the business has been dominated by the commercial market.

Japanese shipping company Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) held its annual Dry Bulk Safety Conference at the company’s headquarters in Tokyo to share safety awareness and review trouble response for dry bulk vessels.A total of 75 participants from 41 Japanese shipowners and ship-management companies attended.The conference has been held every year since 2010 to promote safety through the exchange of ideas and the sharing of information about recent incidents with shipowners and ship-management company personnel in charge of vessel management.