Good morning, and welcome to the daily Panamax Post column.
 
With much in the news, I wish you good fixtures and safe travels, until we meet here again on Monday. And now for the news before the headlines.
 
Ships fired on in Strait of Hormuz, Zim surprise bidder, soaring tanker prices, and other top maritime news for the first week of May.
 
Amidst an ongoing ceasefire and active negotiations towards a peace deal, the U.S. has bombed the island of Qeshm and port of Bandar Abbas: Fox News Media

BALTIC EXCHANGE LIMITED(THE)‘s dry bulk freight index advanced for a fifth session, rising about 1.3% to its highest since December 2023 at 3,034 points.

Geopolitical risk has failed to dampen the appetite for VLCC tonnage with five-year old secondhand prices exceeding those for a newbuild.

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited urges shareholders to back its board as Diana Shipping Inc.’s takeover fight heats up ahead of next month’s AGM.

Zodiac Maritime expands into gas shipping with a new VLAC ammonia carrier order in South Korea, broadening its recent tanker and containership push: Trade Winds

The Sustainable Shipping Initiative (SSI) has released the first integrated, industry-wide mapping of crew welfare, wellbeing and safety data in shipping, funded by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation.

Families of the lost crew members of the cargoship Mariana have confirmed the identity of the sole body that divers recovered from the vessel’s upturned hull.

Tunisian salvors have refloated the drill rig Ocean Valiant, which drifted aground in the Bizerte region last year.
 
For several months now, the sole Russian warship in the Mediterranean has been the Steregushchiy Class corvette RFS Stoykiy (F545), last identified docked in Tartus in April.

Robotics moves deeper into shipyards, with automated welding and hydroblasting now tied to delivery speed, repair efficiency and labour pressure.

Sakal’s surprise $4.5bn bid for ZIM Integrated Shipping Services has cast doubt over Hapag-Lloyd AG’s previously “binding” $4.2bn deal.

Diesel’s price shock is pushing China’s freight fleet toward electric trucks at record pace — and Europe may be next in line.
 
The Hawks Group has added MT Hawks Victory to its high seas bunkering fleet serving fishing and factory vessels in the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea.

A.P Moller Maersk reported an EBIT loss of $192m in Q1 2026 for its ocean business, or container shipping, driven by continued market pressure on freight rates.
 
With the Hormuz crisis into its third month, terminal operator DP World has launched a first-of-its-kind cargo war risk insurance solution to help businesses navigate disruption across Middle East trade routes.

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