Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso announced on January 3 that he had "successfully concluded" the FTA with China, an agreement that will allow Ecuadorian "industries" to "acquire machinery and inputs at lower costs." The negotiation with Ecuador's second trading partner lasted ten months, and now they are working to sign one with the United States. The treaty with Beijing will represent an increase of up to 20% in national exports to the Chinese market.

Conventional reefer ships that played a critical role in shipping perishables during the pandemic could be forced into retirement by new International Maritime Organization (IMO) pollution regulations. Dutch consultancy Dynamar says the carbon intensity indicator (CII) and energy efficiency of existing ships (EEXI) rules will force the ageing conventional fleet to slow to speeds that won't meet market requirements for perishable goods.

Banana selling prices in Russia were USD 18.00-18.75 per box CIF. Demand for the fruit was weak, and large volumes of bananas were available in the market. Nearly 700,000 boxes were discharged in week 51, and around 2.08 million are expected for week 52. The exchange rate of USD/RUB was 1 USD=72.13 RUBLE. The year-over-year inflation rate in Russia was measured at 12.6 percent for the week ending December 12, 2022, up from 12.5 percent in the previous week.

While the grand final of the World Cup was taking place between Argentina and France, the "CMA CGM Argentina" docked at the D.P. World port of Guayaquil in Posorja, the vessel with the largest capacity and dimension that has ever arrived in Ecuador, thus breaking a new record. This container ship, built in 2019, has a capacity of more than 15,000 TEUs and a length of 366 meters.

Stickers on the peel of bananas are something that most people don't look at. In addition to the possible name of the producer, the declaration should also include a number that reveals essential information about the way the fruit was grown. Statements primarily refer to fruit imported from abroad, and this is the meaning of those numbers:

They are called 964, 965 or 966: the Tropical Technical Institute (IT2) has developed new varieties of bananas intended to be more resistant to natural hazards to sustainably strengthen the sector in Guadeloupe, which has been undermined by numerous diseases. "It is for us to perpetuate the sector", explains to AFP Jean-Louis Butel, whose exploitation found in Saint-Sauveur (Guadeloupe) welcomes a few hundred feet of these new varieties.

JP Farms, the leading commercial banana farmer in Jamaica, has declared that it will pursue legal action against fraudsters in Canada who have distorted its brand by selling bananas with counterfeit JP branding. Jamaica Gleaner said that JP Farms wants “Jamaican bananas” wearing counterfeit JP branding removed from the Canadian market as soon as feasible.

California air officials are claiming that sweeping new rules to reduce pollution from ocean-going vessels (OGVs) at berth are on track for implementation and enforcement, despite ongoing industry complaints that key elements are not in place and equipment needed to electrify ship power at port is not available to enable compliance.

Banana selling prices in St. Petersburg ranged from USD 22.50 to USD 24.10 per box CIF. Around 1.92 million boxes were discharged in week 44, and 2.03 million are expected for week 45. November 4 was Unity Day -also called Day of People's Unity -, a public holiday in the Russian Federation. The exchange rate between the USD and the Ruble was almost the same as the previous week,1 USD=61.62 Ruble.

The major shipping lines say they will pass on the extra costs of compliance with the forthcoming European Union Emissions Trading System (ETS). Alliance partners Maersk Line and MSC have said they would pass on the total cost to customers, estimating this at €90 per tonne of CO2. "We would envisage adding the cost on our Far East to North Europe trade of €69 ($70.80) per teu for dry containers and €208 ($213.55) per feu for reefer containers. North Europe to Asia, the cost would be €37 per dry teu and €110 per reefer feu," said MSC.

As part of the strategy to decarbonize its customers' supply chains, A.P. Moller - Maersk (Maersk) has entered a green* methanol partnership with U.S.-based project developer Carbon Sink LLC. It is Maersk's 8th such agreement in the efforts to accelerate global production of green methanol. The parties have signed a Letter of Intent covering the development by Carbon Sink of green methanol production facilities in the United States.

On 5 May 2021, A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S (the “Company”) announced a share buy-back program of up to DKK 32bn (around USD 5bn) to be executed over a period of two years. On 12 August 2022 the Company announced an increase in the current share buy-back program from DKK 32bn (around USD 5bn) to DKK 39.3bn (around USD 6bn).

Madeira's banana producers demanded the payment of 90 cents per kilogram instead of the current 65 and considered the regional government's extraordinary support for the first half of the year insufficient. Speaking to reporters in Funchal, the president of the Association of Banana Producers Organizations (ABAMA) said that, considering expenses and the current cost of living, bananas should be paid by GESBA (the public company that manages the sector) "at least 90 cents" per kilo, instead of the current €0.65.

ORBCOMM Inc., the global provider of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, announced that ZIM Integrated Shipping Services s selected ORBCOMM’s fleet management platform, ReeferConnect, for remote monitoring of their refrigerated containers. ORBCOMM will be showcasing its comprehensive ReeferConnect platform supporting all marine assets from refrigerated and dry containers to chassis to vessels in Booth D32 at Intermodal Europe in Amsterdam from November 8-10, 2022.

There is not only gas. The Reefer Terminal has launched an ambitious investment program for a total of 68 million euro, with the aim of modernizing the facilities dedicated to fruit and containers. The Port System Authority is evaluating the application presented by Gnl Med, a joint venture of which the Novella Group, Autogas and Levorato Marcevaggi are part, to establish a liquefied natural gas deposit in the areas between Vado and Bergeggi for the supply of fueled ships.