FTW1058SD
FREIGHT & TRADING WEEKLY
FRIDAY 27 November 2009 NO. 1890
The Freight Community’s Weekly Newspaper for Import / Export decision makers – on subscription
SA ports deny entry to pirate-proof vessels
World Cup will boot SA out of recession
‘Barbed wire coils will hamper cargo vessels’
By Ed Richardson
By Ray Smuts Vessels equipped with antipiracy barbed wire coils are not welcome in South African ports. That’s according to a directive from the port authorities denying entry to any Pacific International Line (PIL) vessels equipped with these coils. The Singaporean-flagged carrier, operating several services between South Africa and the Middle East, is rightly concerned at the increase in Somali piracy attacks following the October 15 hijacking of its containership, Kota Wajar, 150 miles north of Seychelles. The vessel and crew are still in captivity. Not welcome at SA ports … one of PIL’s barbed wire reinforced vessels. Planning to reinforce ships sailing along the arrival of the first suchCape Town harbourmaster, East African coast for equipped vessel, Kota Captain Ravi Naicker, Durban and Cape Town, Hapas, on December 27. who advised chief PIL considered it prudent ThePage request harbourmaster Captain MF00042_print 9:11 AM 8 was to sound outads_CTP Transnet4/7/09 in immediately rejected by Mike Brophy: “Not advance, ahead of the C M Y
FTW1761SD
CM
acceptable. It will hamper cargo ships, tug and workboat manoeuvring and also send a negative To page 20 MY CY CMY K
Next year’s Soccer World Cup will help South Africa boot its way out of the global recession, according to the Organisation for Economic Development’s latest Economic Outlook. It predicts that real GDP growth will be negative overall for 2009, “but should turn positive in the fourth quarter and accelerate in the first half of 2010, boosted by the soccer World Cup”. The OECD forecasts GDP growth of 2.7% next year, recovering to 4.5% in 2011 – much higher than many of the country’s trading partners. Inflation should return to the target range in 2010 aided by a substantial output gap and the feed through of past rand appreciation.