An Interesting Divergence Is Emerging Between The Fed And Other Central Banks

Hormuz In The Rearview As Asia-US Ocean Container Rates Soar Past $7,900 By Stuart Chirls of AmericanShipper The container shipping market is being driven by geopolitics, rates, and network reshuffling, but freight-rate volatility and adjustments by carriers to protect schedules and pricing has supplanted Middle East disruptions as top-level concerns. Asia-U.S. West Coast prices increased 8% to $6,175 per forty foot equivalent unit (FEU), according to Freightos, a data contributor to SONAR ocean market data. Prices for Asia-U.S. East Coast transportation also rose 8%, to $7,998 per FEU. SONAR‘s Ocean Supply/Demand Index reflects the...

US forces launched airstrikes in Somalia from February 22 to February 26, US Africa Command has announced, as the Trump administration continues its record-breaking bombing campaign in the country. AFRICOM said in a press release that it conducted airstrikes on those days against the ISIS affiliate in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region, about 43 miles southeast […]

The Plumbing For Vast Defense Spending Needs To Be Set Up By Michael Every of Rabobank In response to Iranian strikes on ships using the Omani route in Hormuz, the US has struck Iranian air defense, missile, and drone sites in the Strait and suspended its oil sanctions waiver. These are clear breaches of the MoU, and we will now see if Iran escalates --it says it will take “decisive” action-- with the risk of war if the US is also prepared to go that route. We suspect the US will...