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Minister says Turkish ship can pass through Strait of Hormuz
Abdulkadir Uraloglu, Turkish Transport and Infrastructure minister, said that a Turkish-owned ship which had been awaiting near Iran received permission to pass through the Strait of Hormuz after he and his officials contacted Tehran. Uraloglu, in comments made to Turkish media Thursday and released Friday, said that Ankara has declared the highest level of security warning for?strait. He also stated that Ankara continues contact with Iranian officials about the situation regarding the remaining 14 Turkish owned vessels. Uraloglu stated that "Fifteen Turkish-owned ships were present; we received permission from the Iranian authorities to use an Iranian port by one of these vessels, and it was approved." The ministry confirmed that the Rozana was the ship which 'passed the strait. The ministry added that Turkish vessels in the area had 171 crew members. The U.S. and Israeli war against Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz. This has left tankers, other ships, stranded. This has stoked fears about global energy supply. The ministry also announced that Turkish Airlines and Ajet cancelled flights from March 19 to March 20, including flights to Iran. Pegasus Airlines has cancelled flights from?Kuwait to Bahrain, Doha, Beirut, Iraq and Dubai, Abu?Dhabi and Sharjah, until 23 March, while cancelling Iran flights till 28 March. Turkish Airlines has announced that it will be adding flights to Oman. It also said that 76 flights have been diverted from Turkey since the beginning of the conflict on February 28. Tuvan Gumrukcu, Darin Butler, Alex Richardson and Darin Butler edited the article.
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Thai family waiting for news of missing relative in ship attack on Straits of Hormuz
Sommai Butdee, a rural Thai woman in the northeast, awaits news of her missing nephew. He is one of the three crewmembers of the 'Thai flagged vessel, which was hit by two projectiles as it traveled through the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week. Sommai (58) gathered her family under the wooden stilt house in Ban Sai, Surin Province, on Friday. She held up her phone and showed a picture of her 27-year old nephew Panupong Muentan who had graduated from a merchant maritime training centre. "He didn't ?say much. I wished him safe travels. He'd worked at sea before, maybe once or twice. He said, "Don't worry. "There's no need to be afraid," Sommai replied, remembering their last meeting in February. Sommai raised her niece and described him a good, devoted man who hoped to?help pay off his family's debts and his siblings' tuition fees by his?work in the engine room. "They only went there to earn a living and to work. They had no idea what was going on in the rest of the world. We never imagined it would end up this way. Dechawat, his 70-year-old uncle, said that all of his parents and family members were sad. Bangkok has asked Tehran to apologize and clarify the incident. Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Thai Foreign Minister, told reporters in Bangkok on Friday that Thailand was 'not a part of the conflict. The ship did not carry anything controversial. There have been other ships that had a safe passage. Our vessel should have also been treated this way. The U.S. and Israeli war against Iran has disrupted the global trade via the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's Revolutionary guards said in a Tasnim report that the ship had been "fired on by Iranian fighters". The Omani Navy rescued 20 other crewmembers who had abandoned ship and were in a lifeboat. Precious shipping, the ship owner, said that three crewmen were missing and believed to be in engine room. If he lives, I just want to hug. I hope that he's safe. "I would be so happy," Sommai replied. (Additional reporting and writing by Chalinee Triasupa, Editing by Kate Mayberry; Chayut setboonsarng)
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Data shows that Russian exports of seaborne oil products in February fell by 3.3% compared to the previous month.
Data from industry sources and calculations revealed that Russia's seaborne?oil product -exports for February 2026 fell 3.3% from the previous month to 7.97?metric tons?. This was due to a combination of?unplanned?refinery _outages? and harsh weather conditions in key ports. According to the data, oil exports from Russia’s Baltic ports - Primorsk Vysotsk St. Petersburg Ust-Luga -- decreased by?11.4% on a month-to-month basis to 4.7 millions tons. Since mid-February, Russian Baltic ports have barred non-ice class tankers from entering. Ice1 and Ice2 vessels are allowed to enter with icebreakers. The data revealed that, in contrast to the Baltic Sea, oil products exports from Black Sea ports and Azov Sea ports rose by 13.7% over the previous month, to a total of?2,565 million tonnes. Last month, oil?product?exports to the Arctic ports of Murmansk & Arkhangelsk dropped from 61.200 tonne in January. Data from industry sources revealed that fuel exports at Russia's Far East ports increased by 8% in February, to 665 tons.
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Wall Street Journal, March 13,
These are the top stories from the Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal has not'verified' these stories, and cannot vouch for the accuracy of their content. ByteDance's Chinese parent company, TikTok, is building computing power outside China using high-end Nvidia processors. Qantas Airways has agreed to pay over US$74m to settle a class-action lawsuit for its decision to not offer immediate cash refunds on flights that were canceled during the Covid-19 pandemic. Stryker stated that a cyber-attack related to the Iranian conflict continues to disrupt its operations including order processing and manufacturing. The nonprofit that produces the television show "Sesame" has filed a lawsuit against the parent company of 'SeaWorld,' alleging they haven't paid royalties or shortened the operations of an aquatic park themed 'Sesame' with little notice. Lululemon Athletica's founder Chip Wilson has warned prospective chief-executive candidate that the company's problems stem more from its board than its leadership vacancy. A?Qatari investment fund has made a bid for the privatization of pizza chain Papa John's International.
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BofA defers the BoE rate cut to June due to rising energy prices
BofA Global Research has pushed back its call for the Bank of England to begin cutting rates to June. It says that rising energy prices are reviving 'inflation risk and have clouded policy outlook. Wall Street brokerages, who had previously penciled in a reduction in March and in June, are now expecting a quarter-point cut in both June and September of this year. Higher energy prices, driven largely by geopolitical tensions, in the Middle East have increased uncertainty about?inflation, and the BoE rate-cutting trajectory. The conflict has thrown off expectations for inflation in the near term. Inflation had slowed to 3.0% in January, and was expected to move towards the BoE's target of 2% in the months ahead. Brent crude has returned to $100 per barrel after almost reaching $120 earlier in the week. BofA stated that "we could see an earlier reduction in April if prices of energy revert by then. However, there are risks for further delays this year and a lesser number cuts if the conflict continues." It added that the BoE will likely maintain its easing bias, but would also stress that uncertainty is increasing, and that policy tightening still has a high bar. Goldman Sachs Standard Chartered, and Morgan Stanley also delayed their Bank of England easing predictions, now expecting the initial cut?into the second quarter, as the Iran War lifts energy 'prices and inflation -risks. BofA's note on Thursday said that the central bank will be able to make a more accurate decision about whether or not it should ease policy further. The key factors influencing this decision are the downside risks of growth and the weakening labour market. An official from the Office for Budget Responsibility stated that Britain's inflation could end the year at a rate of around 3% rather than the roughly 2 percent assumed by fiscal forecasters. This is if the current energy prices are maintained. (Reporting by Akriti Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy)
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The Taliban in Afghanistan claim that Pakistan has bombed a fuel depot near Kandahar Airport.
The Taliban said that Pakistan bombed a fuel depot near the Kandahar Airport in Afghanistan, which is operated by the private airline Kam Air. This was the worst conflict between the South Asian neighbors for years, despite attempts to calm tensions. Last month, Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan targeted what Islamabad claimed were militant strongholds. Afghanistan launched retaliatory strikes after calling the airstrikes a violation of its sovereignty. Zabihullah Mojahid, Taliban spokesperson, said that "the company (Kam air) supplies fuel to civil?airlines and to United Nations aircraft." He said that Pakistan also carried out bombings, including in the capital Kabul. Women and children were among those killed, as homes of civilians were targeted at some locations. Prior to the latest attack, neither Pakistani nor Afghan airstrikes on Afghanistan had been reported in recent days, and the ground fighting along the 2,600 km (1 600 mile) border has also decreased. The Pakistani military has not responded to a request for comment. Islamabad claims that Kabul is a'safe haven for militants who carry out attacks against Pakistan. The Taliban denies this accusation, and claims that militancy in Pakistan is a problem of its own. Reports on Thursday indicated that China's mediation efforts, which had been calling for an end to the violence, helped to ease tensions between the two countries. Tahir Andrabi, Pakistan's spokesperson for the foreign ministry, had said that Islamabad and Beijing were also engaged in a "dialogue" process on Afghanistan. Reporting by Mohammad Yunus Yawar from Kabul; Additional reporting by Shilpa jamkhandikar from Mumbai; Writing and editing by Sakshi dayal, Christopher Cushing, and Raju gopalakrishnan
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As Middle East trade routes are blocked by conflict, air freight rates have risen.
Data shows that air freight rates on some routes have risen up to 70% since the U.S./Israeli war against Iran began. The conflict has caused flights to be restricted, ocean shipments to be blocked, and jet fuel prices are on the rise. Experts say that the Middle Eastern airspace restrictions and security concerns have had the greatest impact on the rates for routes between South Asia and Europe. This is after more than 100 containers ships were stranded in the area surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil export corridor. Container ships are used to transport products like generic drugs from India that are destined for Europe, Africa, and certain Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. "The biggest shift I have heard is that companies are moving generic medicines from ocean freight to air freight," said Yadav. He's a senior fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations. Air cargo has become a major factor in global trade, accounting for about one-third of the total value. Rate spikes could have a negative impact on goods such as fresh foods, pharmaceuticals and electronic products. Steve Blough is the chief supply chain strategy at logistics software company Infios. He said that customers are moving freight from oceans to air. However, it's extremely expensive. It can be 5x-10x more expensive. And these costs are increasing as capacity tightens. Shippers often move a small quantity by air to fill a gap. JET FUEL PRICES DOUBLE The price of jet fuel has doubled in the last two years. Danish container shipping giant,?Maersk? announced this week that its air cargo service is now applying fuel surcharges as well as war risk levies. Airspace closures also resulted in a reduction of cargo capacity on passenger and freighter planes, as airlines took longer routes to avoid conflict zones. This further pushed up rates. The Middle Eastern conflict has severely restricted operations at Dubai and Doha, which are usually among the busiest air freight hubs in the world. Niall van de Wouw (chief air freight officer, transportation pricing platform Xeneta) attributed the higher air cargo prices to a "dramatic decrease" in capacity at major Middle East transshipment centers, rather than increased fuel prices. Ronald Lam, CEO of Cathay Pacific Airways in Hong Kong, said that many of their freighter flights heading to Europe stop at Dubai to fuel up and to pick up additional cargo. He said this on a Wednesday earnings call. "But due to the situation in Dubai we're skipping that layover and are now flying direct from Hong Kong to Europe, with some payload restrictions, because we could not uplift fuel between," he explained. According to an air freight index published by Freightos (a platform for booking and paying freight), spot off-contract rates from South Asia into Europe are up 70% from $2.57 to $4.37 per kilogram just before the start of the war. South Asia to North America rates are now up 58% at $6.41 per kg. Europe to the Middle East rates have increased by 55%, to $2.79 a kg. According to Judah Levine of Freightos, the head of research, a significant portion of air cargo exports are routed through Gulf hubs, and others have had to be rerouted through East Asia. He said that the price increase on some of these lanes has slowed, leveled off, or even declined slightly over the past few days. These trends could be due to Asian and European carriers adding capacity on these long-haul routes to compensate for Gulf capacity. They may also be due to some Gulf carriers, most notably Emirates, having resumed operations and increased the number of flights leaving and arriving at important Gulf hubs.
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South Korea Police raid Transport Ministry to expand Jeju Air crash investigation
South Korean police investigating the 2024 Jeju Air crash announced on Friday that they had raided the?transport ministry? as part of an extensive investigation into whether regulatory failures contributed to disaster at Muan International Airport. The raid comes after a'reinvestigation' of wreckage by the Ministry and the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board. This has revealed additional human remains and personal belongings, more than a year after the crash. Authorities have already combed regional aviation offices, as well as contractors involved in airport construction. This is part of an effort to establish responsibility for the crash that killed 179 people. The?police declined to comment on the raid that took place Friday, but Yonhap News Agency reported an official saying the goal was to?security additional material?needed for the ongoing investigation into the cause of disaster. (Reporting and editing by Ed Davies.)
WestJet will no longer offer non-reclinable seats in its economy class after complaints
WestJet Airlines announced on Friday that it would eliminate non-reclinable seats in economy class on a number of Boeing 737 aircraft. This decision was made after a slew complaints and 'videos posted on social media of passengers with their knees pressed against the seat ahead.
After reviewing data from operations and the feedback of travelers, the Canadian carrier announced in a press release that it would return to its previous standard economy seat configuration.
WestJet's decision to reconfigure seats in its planes last year?to allow for larger premium seating at the front?was widely seen as a test on the limits of the add-on culture. Economy seats that can be adjusted are still available, but they cost extra.
The videos of passengers with cramped leg problems were posted on social media in January, even though WestJet, owned by Onex Corp. and WestJet, had paused their rollout last month. The pitch (the space between rows of seats) was reduced from 30 inches to 28 inches in order to accommodate an additional row of seating.
WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech said in a statement that the airline tried to offer seat pitches which are used by many airlines worldwide. They do this because they provide low-cost airfares. "At the?same time, it's just as important to respond quickly if the seat pitches don't meet our guests needs."
Pilots and flight attendants also reacted negatively to the move, voicing concerns about comfort and safety. They also questioned whether passengers could safely escape from a plane in an emergency.
Alia Hussain is the president of the union local that represents WestJet cabin staff. She said she was pleased with WestJet’s decision to "reverse course" on Friday. Flight attendants received numerous complaints from angry travelers and had to move some tall passengers' seats in some cases.
She said, "It created an hostile working environment for cabin staff." (Allison Lampert, Montreal; Editing and design by Chris Reese).
(source: Reuters)