The Moody blues about the storm ahead
The Copenhagen (Denmark)-based maritime consultant Sea-Intelligence and the global ratings agency Moody’s see gloomy times ahead for the industry.
"The worst is yet to come," Sea-intelligence said, pointing at the estimated decline of 17 million teu this year on a worldwide basis: "Economists at Goldman Sachs are now forecasting a staggering 24% decline in US GDP in 2020-Q2." Meanwhile, the current "oil price war" could hamper the investment in green technology like scrubbers.
A similar message comes from the ratings agency Moody’s. Having changed its outlook for global shipping to negative from stable, Moody’s predicts that rated shipping companies’ ebitda will shrink by 6%-10% in 2020. If conditions get worse, even a setback of 25-30% in profits is not ruled out. (mw)