Page 75 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - ΜΑΙΟΣ 2024

sion pricing mechanism; ports should be allowed to can open doors for attracting new businesses and
prioritise green investments where it makes the talents to the port and port cities; effective cooper-
most sense in terms of emission reduction. ation between all stakeholders is needed to attract
4. The level playing field both within the internal people to the port since ports cannot do the job
market and vis-à-vis Europe’s neighbours must be without the right people.
safeguarded.
5. Ports are pivotal in strengthening Europe’s resil- IRON ORE SHIPMENTS UP BY 3.8%
ience: They are an essential pillar of Europe’s supply DESPITE WEAK CHINESE DEMAND
chain sovereignty; ports are also in favour of a more During the start of the year, Brazilian iron ore ship-
harmonised approach to address foreign influence ments typically slow down due to mining disrup-
in ports. tions caused by heavy rainfall. However, this year,
6. Ports are partners in striving for a smart but conditions were better and Vale, a leading miner,
safe and secure cyber environment: Digitalisation increased output by 6% y/y, boosting shipments
and smart technologies are crucial tools in making from Brazil.
Europe’s ports more efficient, safe, and sustainable. In China, expectations for more robust steel produc-
7. Europe’s ports require 80 billion in investment tion following the Chinese New Year led to strong
needs for the next ten years: Ports more than ever iron ore prices. However, despite these expecta-
need access to a robust funding support instru- tions, steel production weakened by 3.1% y/y while
ment, with dedicated port envelopes, to invest in both iron ore shipments and domestic mining rose.
projects with high societal value but an often slow, Consequently, iron ore inventories in Chinese ports
low, and risky return on investment; European fund- increased and have now reached the highest levels
ing should be simple. since April 2022.
8. The EU institutional structure should be adapted 73.9% of the world’s seaborne iron ore shipments
to the new reality: A more integrated approach is are bound for China as the country relies greatly on
needed when developing new policies, as trans- ore imports to produce steel.
port, and in particular ports, cannot be discussed “The Capesize segment greatly benefited from
in isolation. this increase in shipments, both due to the higher
9. Ports are a resource for the city: Their new roles volume and the above-average sailing distances
between Brazil and China. This helped the Baltic
Exchange’s Capesize 5TC index to average USD
24,286 per day, up 165.6% y/y,” says Filipe Gouveia,
Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.
For iron ore shipments to continue growing, Chi-
nese steel production must recover, supported by
either more robust domestic demand or higher
exports.
The crisis in the domestic Chinese property sec-
tor has, during the past years, been a drag on both
steel demand and economic growth. Unfortunately,
leading indicators point to even weaker demand
during the rest of 2024. In the first quarter of 2024,
property investment fell by 15% year-on-year, and
the area of new property starts fell by 28.3% year-
on-year. Steel demand from manufacturing and
infrastructure could continue to grow, but overall
domestic demand is expected to remain stagnant.
Abroad, increasing demand for steel could provide
an outlet for Chinese steel products. During the first
quarter of 2024, exports increased by 30.7% y/y.
“While iron ore shipments could slow down, we
still expect them to grow 1-2% in 2024, benefiting
from a 1.7% increase in global steel demand as fore-
cast by the World Steel Association. This may keep
the Capesize segment strong as the fleet is only
expected to grow 1.4% in 2024. Any further increase
in Brazilian mining would lead to longer distances
and an even tighter market,” says Gouveia.

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