'Annus horibilis' ( Latin for year of disaster ) We live in 'extra ordinary times' because of the unprecedented economic situation in our world today and how it has affected the world of shipping! Last year at this time they couldn't build ships fast enough and there was always a shortage of railroad cars to transport containers from the Port of Vancouver to eastern Canada.
The pictures of the two container ships shows the difference between last year and now!How things have changed since the month of October of last year. As the credit crunch bites around the world, declining trade volumes have resulted in a dramatic fall in deman
d for shipping goods. An increasing number of ships are being laid up as trade slows. You can read my other article with a picture of the Port of Singapore congested with vessels. The downturn has come just as a whole generation of new ships, ordered during the latest boom time, have created the 'perfect storm' in the world of shipping!
d for shipping goods. An increasing number of ships are being laid up as trade slows. You can read my other article with a picture of the Port of Singapore congested with vessels. The downturn has come just as a whole generation of new ships, ordered during the latest boom time, have created the 'perfect storm' in the world of shipping!We do not know what the future holds, only God knows, but industry insiders predict a lot of shipping companies going into bankruptcy which means that we may see again ships being abandoned by owners in ports around the world with the result that crews will be 'stranded' on board the ship with no money to buy food and no money to buy an airline ticket to fly home.
And so, in good times and now in bad times we have to be more than ever prepared to communicate to seafarers the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ in word and deed"
