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Fire at airport cargo facility disrupts Bangladeshi garment exports
Industry leaders stated on Sunday that a massive fire at Dhaka Airport's import cargo complex has caused extensive damages to goods and materials belonging major garment exporters. Losses and impacts on trade are likely to be in the millions of dollars. The fire broke out in the cargo village of the airport on Saturday afternoon, forcing the suspension of flights. On Sunday, smoke continued to rise as firefighters and airport officials assessed damage. The fire destroyed storage areas that housed imported raw materials, ready to export apparel, and sample products, all of which are essential for Bangladesh's $47 Billion garment industry. Inamul Haq Khan is the senior vice-president at the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association. "High-value and urgent air shipments were destroyed, including garments ready for shipment, raw material for production and, most important, product samples." He warned that losing samples could affect future business. These samples are crucial for securing buyers and increasing orders. "Our members could miss future opportunities if they lose these samples," he said. ESSENTIAL SAMPLES BURNED in FIRE BGMEA is now gathering information from exporters affected to assess the extent of losses. Khan said that the BGMEA has asked its members to provide detailed lists of damaged products and launched an online portal to accelerate data collection. The airport cargo village, one of Bangladesh's most important logistics hubs handles more than 600 tons of dry goods daily. This figure doubles in the peak season from October to December. Khan stated that "everyday, between 200 and 250 factories ship their products via air." The financial impact of this scale is substantial. An investigation is currently underway to determine the cause of this fire. This is the third major fire in Bangladesh reported this week. On Tuesday, a fire at a Dhaka garment factory and adjacent chemical warehouse killed 16 people and injured many others. Another fire destroyed a seven-storey building of a garment factory in Chittagong's export processing zone on Thursday. Bangladesh is the second largest apparel exporter in the world after China. This sector, which supplies global retailers like Walmart, H&M and Gap, has about 4 million employees and generates $40 billion per year. That's more than 10% of Bangladesh's GDP. Fire, which occurred during peak export season is expected to cause delays in shipments, and make it more difficult for international deliveries to meet deadlines.
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EU Naval Mission says LPG-laden Tanker is on Fire Off Yemen
In a press release, Aspides, the European Union naval force, said that the LPG-laden vessel MV Falcon, was on fire off the coasts of Yemen on Saturday after its crew reported an explosion which forced them to abandon ship. Aspides stated that the cause of explosion was not clear but it most likely an accident based on initial indications. Aspides said that at least 15 percent of the Cameroon flagged vessel was on fire. Aspides warned vessels to maintain a safe distance because the tanker, which was loaded with liquefied gas, could explode. Aspides stated in a press release that "the fire onboard is growing." "MV Falcon is a navigational danger." "Everyone in the area should exercise caution." The 26 crewmembers were being rescued by an operation. Two merchant ships sailing in the area have recovered 24 seafarers so far. Two merchant vessels, one of which was the MV Veda took the seafarers rescued from the ship to Djibouti escorted a Greek frigate. Aspides reported that two crew members have been reported missing. Ambrey, a British security company, said that the MV Falcon was traveling from Oman's Sohar Port towards Djibouti. The explosion happened as the ship was sailing 113 miles south of Aden, Yemen. According to maritime security sources, neither unmanned aerial vehicles nor missiles had been detected. Ambrey stated that the tanker did not match the profile of the Houthi militants in Yemen who are Iran-aligned. According to the Houthi news agency Saba, an official in the Houthi Defence Ministry said that the group has no connection with the incident. Since 2023, Houthi militants claim to have carried out numerous attacks against vessels in the Red Sea in solidarity with Palestinians in response to Israel's Gaza war. The attacks disrupted the flow of trade through the Red Sea, the Suez Canal and one of the busiest shipping routes in the world. Reporting by Enas Al Alashray and Muhammad Al Gebaly; Editing by Jan Harvey, Barbara Lewis and Renee Maltezou
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At least 15 people are killed in a bus crash that occurred in the northeastern region of Brazil
In a statement, the Brazilian Federal Highway Police reported that a bus accident occurred in Pernambuco in northeastern Brazil on Friday evening. The driver of the bus lost control and caused the crash. Accident occurred just before 8 pm. The driver lost control, went into the opposite lane and hit rocks along the side of highway. He then crashed with a sand embankment, overturned, and collided. According to the Federal Highway Police, the Federal Highway Police is investigating the causes of the accident. According to the police list, there were 30 passengers aboard. So far, half have been confirmed as dead, 11 women and 4 men. Total number of injuries has not been revealed. The driver suffered minor injuries. According to the statement, he underwent a test of breathalyzer, and received a normal result. The police said that there were indications some passengers might not have worn seat belts during the accident. (Reporting by Rodrigo Viga Gaier. (Writing by Luciana Magnalhaes Editing Marguerita Choy.
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Fire at Dhaka Airport cargo terminal causes flight delays and diversions
Officials said that flights out of Bangladesh’s main airport on Saturday were either delayed or diverted after a large fire broke out at the cargo terminal. Talha Bin Zassim, an officer with the Fire Service and Civil Defence Media Cell said that 36 firefighting units were working to put out the flames. Airport official Masudul Hasan informed reporters that operations at Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport have been suspended. He added that all aircraft were safe. The cause of the fire was not immediately known. The problem affects both domestic and international flights. Air Arabia from Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, diverted a flight from Delhi bound for Dhaka to Chittagong and IndiGo from Delhi bound for Dhaka to Kolkata. Officials said that a Cathay Pacific plane from Hong Kong circled in the air after it failed to land at Dhaka Airport. The fire service, army, navy and air force all worked together to put out the fire. This is the third fire in Bangladesh reported this week. The fire that broke out at a Bangladeshi garment factory and adjacent chemical storage facility on Tuesday killed four people. At least 16 people Others were injured. Another fire destroyed a building of a Chittagong export processing zone garment factory on Thursday.
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Security firm reports that a tanker with a Cameroon flag issued a distress call to Ahwar in Yemen.
Ambrey, a British maritime security company, said that a tanker flying the flag of Cameroon issued a distress signal on Saturday following an explosion aboard as it passed around 60 nautical miles south-southeast of Ahwar in Yemen. The cause of explosion is unclear. Ambrey confirmed that it had received radio communications from the crew indicating their intention to abandon ship. A search and rescue effort was in progress. Ambrey said that the vessel was traveling from Oman's Sohar Port, to Djibouti. The tanker is not thought to have been linked to the Houthis, Yemen's Iran aligned militia. Since 2023 they have attacked numerous vessels in the Red Sea, targeting vessels they believe are linked to Israel as a show of solidarity with Palestinians in response to Israel's Gaza war. The attacks disrupted the flow of trade through the Red Sea, the Suez Canal and one of the busiest shipping routes in the world. Reporting by Enas Al Gebaly and Muhammad Al Gebaly, Editing by Jan Harvey & Barbara Lewis
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Sky News reports that Heathrow is considering WPP boss Jansen to be chairman.
Sky News reported that Philip Jansen, former CEO of BT Group and now chairman of marketing services group WPP is in advanced discussions with Heathrow’s board of directors and shareholders about becoming the chairman of the airport. The report cited sources to say that Jansen was the clear frontrunner of the shortlisted candidates. An announcement could be made within weeks, if discussions are successful. Could not verify the report immediately. Heathrow Airport didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment. Sky News reported in July that the British aviation hub had been working with headhunter Russell Reynolds Associates on recruiting a successor for Paul Deighton who assumed the position in 2016. Deighton’s term as chairman would have ended on April 30th, 2025 after nine years. Due to recent board changes, and the relatively new appointments of leadership, Deighton was asked to extend his tenure. Deighton stated in the annual report of the company that "I have... accepted to extend my role for a limited time as Chair to ensure continuity and security on the HAHL Board throughout this period transition". Sky News reported that Jansen’s experience as CEO of BT Group – a regulated company – from early 2019 until the end of 2024 was a key factor in his selection as he preferred candidate. According to his WPP profile, the executive began his career with Procter & Gamble and has held leadership positions at Sodexo Group and Telewest. He also worked at MyTravel, Travis Perkins and Sodexo Group. Rhea rose Abraham, Bengaluru reporter; Jan Harvey, editor
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China Eastern Airlines resumes flights as China and India restore air connections
China Eastern Airlines, a state-owned airline, will resume Shanghai to Delhi flights on November 9, according to the website of the airline. This comes as China and India resume their direct air links after a five year diplomatic freeze. According to the airline's ticketing platform, flights will be operated three times per week, on Wednesdays. Saturdays and Sundays. China Eastern Airlines didn't immediately respond to a request for comment sent via email. The Indian Foreign Ministry announced earlier this month the resumption of commercial flights between India and its neighbours after a 5-year-long freeze. The announcement came after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited China for the first time in seven years to attend a regional security summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. Both sides discussed how to improve their trade relations, and Modi expressed concern about India's growing bilateral trade deficit. The Indian and Chinese foreign ministers did not respond immediately to requests for comments on the Shanghai-Delhi flight. IndiGo, India's largest airline, announced previously that it would begin daily non-stop flight between Kolkata and Guangzhou. Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, a state-backed airport, said that when IndiGo announced its plans to expand direct flights between Guangzhou (China) and Delhi (India), it would encourage airlines like IndiGo to offer more routes. After deadly clashes on their Himalayan border, the two countries suspended direct flights in 2020. This led to a long-lasting military standoff. (Reporting and editing by Tom Hogue; Amy Lv and Colleen howe)
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Ship tracking data shows Sinopec diverts supertanker away from US-sanctioned ports
According to Chinese consultants and ship tracking data, the latest U.S. sanction on a major Chinese crude terminal has forced Sinopec to divert one supertanker from its route and to ask certain plants to reduce crude processing rates. LSEG data revealed that a supertanker transporting oil to the Chinese Port of Rizhao, in Shandong Province, changed its destination at the weekend after U.S. sanctions were imposed on Friday on an import terminal located there. JLC Consultancy estimated that Sinopec’s October runs could drop by 3.36% compared to earlier plans, and may be around 5.16 million barrels a day. Sinopec has not responded to comments immediately. LSEG data revealed that the supertanker New Vista chartered by Sinopec’s trading arm Unipec, originally scheduled to discharge in Rizhao, on Sunday, has changed its destination to Ningbo or Zhoushan, for arrival on 15 October. New Vista is capable of carrying 2 million barrels and currently carries Abu Dhabi's Upper Zakum crude. The U.S. Treasury listed the Rizhao Shihua crude oil terminal, which is half owned by a Sinopec logistic unit, in a series of sanctions, including ships that transport Iranian crude and liquefied petrol gas. The U.S. announced that the terminal in Lanshan, in Shandong Province, a major Chinese oil refinery hub, had been sanctioned because it received Iranian oil aboard vessels sanctioned by the U.S. According to analysts and industry executives, one-fifth (or a fifth) of Sinopec’s crude oil imports passes through the Rizhao Terminal.
Maguire: Top coal importers have slowed purchases in 2025.
Data from Kpler, a ship tracking company, shows that the world's biggest thermal coal buyers have slowed down their imports in the first quarter 2025. This has led to the lowest quarterly purchase total for three years.
The first quarter global coal imports were slightly over 240 millions metric tons. This is roughly 10 million tonnes less than the quarter before.
China, India and South Korea, the top four coal importers by 2024, all reduced their first-quarter purchases from 2024 to 2024. Clean power production allowed utilities in these countries to reduce coal consumption.
The continued growth of clean power production may allow further reductions to coal imports on the major coal markets in the months ahead and could trigger the first collective contractions in thermal imports for the past two decades.
But several smaller, fast-growing economies increased coal purchases this year. This has helped to offset the declines in the larger markets, and prevent the total imports of coal from falling further.
KEY CUTS
Imports from the top four coal-importing countries, which represented 69% of total coal imports for 2024, were cut by 2025.
China, which is the largest coal importer in the world, has led the reductions of first-quarter purchases, reducing them from 85 million tons to 67 millions tons.
This was China's lowest import total since the third quarter 2022. China's appetite for coal has been curtailed by a combination of a sluggish industrial sector and record coal production in China last year.
India's import total for the first quarter was just over 39 million tons. This is a drop of 5.6 million tonnes from the same period last year.
The Indian authorities prioritized increasing domestic coal production above imports. As a result, India's average monthly import rate has fallen from 45 million tons in late 2023 down to 37 million tons in mid-2024.
South Korea recorded the second-largest reduction in first-quarter imports. The total was 15,3 million tons, compared with 18,6 million tons by 2024. The record nuclear power output in South Korea has prompted utilities to reduce coal and gas-fired production.
The first-quarter imports of Japan were just under 25 million tonnes, a drop from 27,8 million tons in the first quarter 2024. This is the lowest reading for the first-quarter since 2018.
The four largest coal importers collectively reduced their imports of nearly 30 million tonnes in the first quarter 2025 compared to the same period in 2024.
GROWTH MARKETS
While some countries have reduced their coal purchases this year, others have increased them.
In fact, the total imports from outside China, India and Japan, as well as South Korea, accounted for the highest share of the total coal imports over the past three years, during the first quarter 2025.
In 2025, Turkey, Vietnam, and Bangladesh will all have recorded first-quarter export totals, while Malaysia and the Philippines both had their second highest first-quarter figures.
Thailand, Pakistan and Hong Kong - the major seaborne entry points into continental Europe – also registered robust first-quarter export totals.
Volume increases in these markets are not as significant as the drop of nearly 18 million tons recorded by China this year.
The nearly 2 million tons of imports from Turkey, the 1.5 millions in the Netherlands and the approximately 1 million in Bangladesh, Hong Kong, and Vietnam could add up to a significant amount if they are sustained throughout the year.
The trade-matching Kpler system has not yet matched the roughly 43 million tonnes of coal cargoes that were shipped in March.
Once cleared, these volumes will likely increase the delivery volume into all major coal-importing nations in the second quarter 2025 and support coal trade even during what has traditionally been a low point for global use of coal.
The steep drops in coal imports into China and India, in particular, bode well for those who track climate change. They are looking for long-term signs of a global decline in coal imports.
Even if the import volume continues to rise in Turkey and Vietnam, the combined coal imports from the four biggest importers will cause a global contraction in coal shipments at the end of the year.
These are the opinions of a market analyst at.
(source: Reuters)