Good morning, and welcome to the daily Panamax Post column.
 
With much in the news, I wish you good fixtures and safe travels. And now for the news before the headlines.
 
Commanders from Ukraine’s drone forces are reporting that they have now struck a total of 21 vessels in the Sea of Azov over the past 72 hours as part of a campaign targeting occupied Crimea.

The European Parliament has expressed its displeasure with an ongoing, militarily-relevant trade route between Ireland and Russia.

The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk freight index, rose about 1.4% to 2,910.

Oman has made its most unequivocal statement yet on its attitude to free passage navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

KPI OceanConnect lifted pre-tax earnings 21% to $10.9m, crediting stronger advisory capability, new-fuel expertise, compliance support and pooling solutions.

Stolt-Nielsen profits fell as chemical tanker time-charter rates softened in Q2, though management expects a rebound in the third quarter.

Wallenius Wilhelmsen has taken delivery of Arctic Tern, the first methanol-ready vessel in its new Shaper Class series.
 
Complex cyber security threats demand practical solutions: Laurie Eve, VP Global Merchant Sales, Inmarsat Maritime.

Azov– Black Sea grain and vegoil flows weakened sharply this week, with grain exports down over 20% below 1.8m tonnes and vegoil exports falling to a three-month low.

Maersk is expanding its Red Sea/ Suez return with another service, while keeping rerouting options open if security risks worsen.
 
New direct calls from Asia, the USA and Europe are reinforcing northeastern Brazil’s emergence as a growing trade gateway for Maersk and rival carriers.

Hapag-Lloyd AG has agreed to use Hamburg’s shorepower infrastructure whenever available, supporting lower-emission port calls.

Crude tanker newbuilding has hit a record 60m DWT across 234 ships in 2026, led by VLCC demand, strong freight rates and ageing fleet replacement.
 
The Port of Oakland has commissioned TraPac’s new Liebherr Group ship to shore cranes, adding fully electric lifting capacity designed to handle the largest container vessels currently in service.
 
Brazilian soybean exports reached 14.5m tonnes in June 2026, according to Brazil’s official foreign trade statistics portal, COMEXStat,=.

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