Asian spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices remained at their lowest level in nearly six months on Friday as U.S. President Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs pulled global markets down amid fears of a global recession.

The average LNG price for May delivery into north-east Asia LNG-AS remained unchanged from last week at $13.00 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), the lowest level since October 11, industry sources estimated.

“The risk of a global trade war and economic slowdown is pulling down global stock markets and fears of slower growth will impact energy prices too,” said Alex Froley, senior LNG analyst at data intelligence firm ICIS.

Countries around the world threatened to retaliate against Trump’s sweeping tariffs.

China announced additional tariffs of 34% on U.S. goods on Friday, the most serious escalation in a worsening trade war between Beijing and Washington.

“This is obviously not the best environment to get confronted by unseen import tariffs up to 34% for China, and 24-26% for India, South Korea and Japan,” said Klaas Dozeman, market analyst at Brainchild Commodity Intelligence.

“The widely shared opinion is that this will harm global trade and industrial production, reducing the demand for LNG even further,” he…

This year is the 80th anniversary of the end of WWII and PBS is releasing a documentary on Bob Hope and his involvement entertaining the troops and actual correspondence/letters with the service men and women, titled “Miles, Morale and Memories: Bob Hope and WWII,” narrated by Gary Sinise. Three hundred and fifteen stations are currently scheduled to pick up the documentary beginning in May.

Bob Hope and his troupe of performers traveled more than 80,000 miles during World War II to entertain the troops. There were several close calls where Hope and his fellow entertainers were almost killed. Hope and his troupe often performed near the frontlines in Europe and the Pacific as part of an overall Hollywood effort to make sure stars brought some of America to the battle zones. Using animated maps and interviews with Hollywood historians, authors, and combat veterans, “Miles, Morale and Memories: Bob Hope and WWII” examines Hope’s impact and why President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked some of Hollywood’s top radio and movie stars to hold a microphone instead of a gun in the war.

Topics:

• Many of Hollywood’s top stars and directors enlisted or served in the war, many in combat roles.
• Hollywood Canteen and some of entertainments biggest names…

Fincantieri has marked the start of construction on the first of two next-generation FREMM frigates of the EVOLUTION version, known as FREMM EVO, at its Riva Trigoso (Genoa) shipyard.

The contract for the construction of the two new FREMM EVO units was signed in July 2024 by Orizzonte Sistemi Navali (OSN), a joint venture owned by Fincantieri (51%) and Leonardo (49%), and OCCAR (Organisation Conjointe de Coopération en matière d’Armement).

It is part of the multi-year FREMM program aimed at the renewal of the Italian Navy’s fleet through the construction of next-generation frigates. The first unit will be delivered in 2029, while the second in 2030.

The new FREMM EVO units will be at the cutting-edge of naval naval military craft, in terms of technology and performance, capitalizing on the important technological developments already undertaken as part of recent programs under the Defence Act, as well as the Mid Life Upgrade project for the Horizon-class destroyers.

The Italian Navy will be able to rely on two vessels, ensuring high operational performance, with cutting-edge systems and the latest anti-drone capabilities and the capacity for operational management of unmanned systems across three dimensions (above the surface, on the sea and…

The insurance issued to dozens of ageing oil tankers used by Russia to skirt international sanctions was bogus, according to Norwegian authorities now investigating the small firm behind the forged documents.

Norway-registered Romarine AS purported to be an insurance provider with a website listing dozens of tankers believed to be part of Russia’s shadow fleet, including vessels under Western sanctions.

However, the company was not registered as an insurance provider by Norway’s Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA), the FSA said.

Western nations have imposed sanctions on hundreds of ships they suspect Russia is using to avoid price cap restrictions on exports of crude oil and other cargoes.

Such vessels are not regulated or covered by conventional Western insurers, posing the risk of unsafe tankers and environmental damage in the event of a wreck.

What makes the matter of Romarine stand out is that the firm made an effort to show the tankers involved had Western insurance coverage in the event of pollution or sinking.

“It’s an extremely unusual case,” Jo Gjedrem, an official at the FSA, told Reuters.

The FSA sent a warning to Romarine in January, but the company failed to respond, the authority told Reuters, prompting it to issue an order on March 4…

Veson Nautical has used VesselsValue data to confirm that South Korea’s orderbook has now topped $138 billion.

The LNG sector is the most valuable, worth $71.3 billion and accounting for around 52% of the total South Korean orderbook value. This sector also has the highest volume of orders with 276 vessels on order.

Container ships rank second with a market value of $35.6 billion, equating to a share of about 26% and 184 vessels on order. The LPG ranks third with a value of $14.9 billion and 129 vessels on order, closely followed by the tanker orderbook which is valued at $14.7 billion. Tankers surpass both LPG and container ships in volume with 185 vessels scheduled to be built. Vehicle carriers rank fifth with a value of $929 mil and a total of eight vessels on order.

CMA CGM is in first place with a total of $8.09 billion on order, and they have the highest volume of orders consisting exclusively of 38 container vessels within the ULCV, New Panamax, and Post Panamax sectors.

In second place, NYK has a total of $7.21 billion on order which includes 26 large LNG vessels of 174,000 CBM and three VLACs of 88,000 CBM. 

In addition to these vessels on order in South Korea, NYK has a further 56 vessels on order in Chinese, Japanese and German yards,…

Taiwanese shipping firm Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp has purchased three 8,000 TEU methanol dual-fuel-ready container ships from Japanese ship leasing company Shoei Kisen Kaisha.

The vessels, being built by Imabari Shipbuilding, are scheduled for delivery between 2028 and 2029.

Yang Ming said the acquisition will strengthen its global service network and reinforce its commitment to providing customers with reliable and sustainable transportation service.

To support business growth and maintain core competitiveness, Yang Ming’s fleet optimization plan to add up to thirteen 8,000–15,000 TEU class containerships was approved at company’s board meeting.

The acquisition of the three 8,000 TEU vessels, currently under construction, marks the first phase of the plan.

The remaining portion will be carried out in accordance with internal procurement procedures to ensure mid- to long-term fleet stability and maintain service quality.

The new vessels will be equipped with energy-efficient main engines, ensuring immediate energy savings while maintaining flexibility for the future adoption of alternative fuels.

“To address the challenges posed by evolving geopolitics, supply chain regrouping, and the increasing demand for green services, Yang Ming…