Covid's silver linings set to wear thin

IT IS a well-worn cliche that shipping is a cyclical business. That is indeed broadly true but the shipping markets are fickle and not necessarily in step with the wider global economy. Experience so far through the coronavirus pandemic has borne this out.

To some extent, the trade disruptions caused by Covid-19 have had beneficial effects for some sectors of shipping. Last week, Maritime Strategies International managing director Adam Kent put it another way. He explained to the 300 or so participants at the Singapore Shipping Forum 2021 that market inefficiencies had been instrumental in supporting shipping markets in 2020. However he also cautioned that the market needs to be prepared for the effects of unwinding these inefficiencies.

The forum is hosted annually by Moore Stephens, Singapore, and organised in conjunction with co-sponsor BNP Paribas. The event, supported by both the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers and the Singapore Shipping Association, was part of the Singapore Maritime Week 2021, organised by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA).