LNG carrier freight rates have come under severe pressure due to rising fleet supply and stabilising LNG demand, as Japan prepares to restart its nuclear power plants. Despite the general market belief that new LNG supply from Australian projects will provide ample employment to the growing fleet, there are immediate challenges on freight rates. This is due to 49 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of Australian LNG cargo supply expected to hit the market over the next two years, according to the newly launched LNG Forecaster report published by global shipping consultancy Drewry.

A surge in crude tanker vessel capacity over the next two years will lead to a fall in ship-owner earnings from current highs, according to the latest edition of the Tanker Forecaster, published by global shipping consultancy Drewry.

The specialised reefer fleet is shrinking and shows no signs of reversing in the future. However, the reefer containership fleet has increased by 15 percent year-on-year and is set to grow 20 percent by 2018, according to Drewry's latest Reefer Shipping Market Annual Review & Forecast.

Distribution centers near the nation's top seaports are bursting with consumer goods and other cargo - and that's before the Panama Canal extension opens next spring. Distribution center and warehouse occupancy levels have reached historic highs, while expensive construction and labor costs keep new development sparse in many seaport industrial real estate markets.

Import cargo volume at the nation's major retail container ports is expected to increase 7.3 percent this month over the same time last year as retailers stock up for the busy back-to-school season, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

Low material costs and stable demand have driven the price of new container equipment down to record lows where it is forecast to stay, according to the latest edition of the Container Census report published by global shipping consultancy Drewry.