Avsnitt
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Since late last year, Houthi rebels in Yemen have been escalating their attacks on commercial shipping routes in the Red Sea, firing Iranian designed anti-ship missiles and launching drone strikes on vessels carrying goods between Europe and Asia.
The number of container ships in the region plummeted in December, as shipping companies opted to use the much longer – and more expensive route – around the Cape of Good Hope.
Initially, and despite the growing risks, oil and gas tankers continued to use the Red Sea corridor.
But in recent weeks, this has all changed, with the number of vessels carrying crude or petroleum products having dropped to almost zero in the region, in the wake of ongoing Houthi assaults.
In today’s episode, GTR senior reporter, John Basquill, provides an update on the Red Sea crisis and explains the potential ramifications, both direct and indirect, for the commodities trading sector.
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Host Felix Thompson is joined by senior reporters John Basquill and Eleanor Wragg, as well as reporters Jacob Atkins and Jenny Messenger, to discuss some of the most-read articles on the GTR news site this year.
Insurance-related court disputes, the impact of Basel requirements on the trade finance industry, efforts to ban fossil fuel support within the OECD Arrangement on Officially Supported Export Credits and the demise of yet another digital trade consortia, all feature in our 2023 review.
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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Host Felix Thompson is joined by reporter Jacob Atkins to discuss a recent Singapore court case involving JP Morgan and a coal trader, Kuvera Resources.
Last year JP Morgan successfully fended off a lawsuit brought by Singapore’s Kuvera Resources, with a judge finding that the lender was entitled to decline payment for a US$2.4mn shipment of coal because the vessel involved may have been Syrian-owned and subject to far-reaching US sanctions on the country.
But Singapore’s Court of Appeal on September 28 decided in Kuvera’s favour, ruling that JP Morgan did not prove to an acceptable standard of proof that the vessel was in fact under Syrian ownership at the time of the trade.
Instead, the court found the bank’s decision to reject payment was based on its own risk management calculations due to the presence of “red flags” that suggested a connection with Syrian entities.
In this episode, we delve into the reasons behind the judges’ decision, and why the proceedings have been described as a “test case” for the use of sanctions clauses in letter of credit transactions. All the facts of the case described by Jacob in this episode are taken from the written judgement.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson is joined by senior reporters Eleanor Wragg and John Basquill, and reporter Jacob Atkins, to discuss some of the most-read articles on the GTR news site this year.
The demise of supply chain finance giant Greensill has been one of the major stories over the past 12 months. In this episode, we consider the events that triggered this collapse and the lender’s use of so-called “future receivables”.
Elsewhere, we assess the fallout from a string of fraud scandals in the commodity finance sector in 2020, and why banks remain risk averse to financing the smaller traders in the market.
The editorial team also provides an update on the industry’s trade digitalisation efforts, including the growing momentum behind UNCITRAL’s Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (MLETR).
Meanwhile, Jacob also gives a brief overview of the supply chain crisis of 2021, and why it’s likely to last well into next year.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
The US government has signalled that banks face extra scrutiny over supply chains that include forced labour in the Chinese province of Xinjiang.
Australia’s banks have defended their decision to exit the thermal coal sector, pushing back against suggestions from government lawmakers that they be forced to extend financing to fossil fuels.
The US government’s decision to lift sanctions on liquefied petroleum gas exports to Venezuela should be seen as a “humanitarian gesture” rather than a wholesale shift in trade relations, experts suggest.
Senior reporter Eleanor Wragg also provides a closer analysis on why trade innovation risks being stranded on digital islands.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
The UK’s Serious Fraud Office has announced it is investigating potential fraudulent trading and money laundering at GFG Alliance.
Environmental groups are urging the European Commission to exclude LNG and biofuels as sustainable alternatives for vessels in an upcoming maritime fuel law in the European Green Deal.
In other news, the Law Commission of England and Wales has announced a consultation on a proposed legislative reform which would give legal recognition to electronic versions of trade documents
Meanwhile, a move by India, Japan and Australia last month to collectively boost supply chain resilience could eventually squeeze China out of the trios’ supply chains for sectors such as semiconductors, batteries and rare earths, experts say.
Senior reporter Eleanor Wragg also provides a closer analysis of a new commitment made by G7 digital and technology ministers to adopt electronic transferable records in international trade transactions.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Legal challenges against Greensill are centring on its controversial future receivables financing product.
French energy major Total has been forced to suspend operations at its liquified natural gas project in northern Mozambique for the second time this year, after a fresh attack by insurgents.
In other news, Standard Chartered is launching a set of sustainable trade finance solutions across Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Europe and the Americas.
We also take a closer look at R3's decision to launch an electronic bill of lading solution.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Industry insiders are hopeful that access to funding and insurance will remain resilient across the wider supply chain finance market, despite the disastrous collapse of London-based behemoth Greensill.
Trade finance transactions on Triterras’ blockchain-based Kratos platform can be viewed publicly, without any specialist knowledge or equipment, GTR can reveal.
Swift has integrated the International Chamber of Commerce’s sustainable trade finance guidelines into its KYC registry, effectively creating an ESG reporting repository for companies around the world.
Senior reporter John Basquill also provides a closer analysis of the sudden and dramatic demise of SCF provider Greensill, and what it means for the wider industry.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Scandal-hit oil trader GP Global is seeking court intervention to stop creditors in Singapore “stealing a march” on banks that are owed millions of dollars.
The Libyan central bank’s letter of credit system may have been exploited for “fraud on a large scale”, researchers say.
The annual GTR Mena event returned (virtually) on February 15-17, to reflect on an eventful year for global trade and developments in the Middle East and North Africa. We assess some of the main takeaways and key insights.
In other news, pressure is growing for UK and US companies to shift supply chains out of Xinjiang following recent measures by both governments to crack down on imports of goods linked to the Chinese region.
Meanwhile, we also take a closer look at Singapore’s decision to adopt into its own domestic legislation the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
After months of deadlocks, the World Trade Organization has named Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as its seventh director general.
Global commodity trader Trafigura is set to secure a new sustainability-linked revolving credit facility as it works to cut its carbon footprint and boost renewables.
According to the International Maritime Organization, the number and severity of attacks on vessels by pirates in the Gulf of Guinea are increasing, posing a threat to global trade and the safety of seafarers working in the region.
Meanwhile, there are warnings that illicit metals trading is proving even more lucrative than cocaine to South America’s criminal gangs.
Reporter Maddy White also provides a closer analysis of the coup in Myanmar and how it’s impacting foreign businesses based there.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
US authorities say companies in Iran are using forged shipping documents, vessel impersonation techniques and UAE-based front companies to circumvent sanctions and export oil.
Singapore has become the second country after Bahrain to adopt into its own domestic legislation the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records.
Dialogue Exchange has created a set of free, open common standards for single credit risk insurance, as part of wider efforts to bring the market into the digital age.
Elsewhere, foreign businesses and investors that bet on a democratic Myanmar have been left rattled and are exiting the country.
Senior reporter John Basquill also provides a closer analysis of a major story from last week, and explains how the UAE is looking to shed its reputation as a financial crime hotspot.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Rabobank plans to streamline its trade and commodity finance offering by terminating operations in London, Shanghai and Sydney, GTR can reveal.
Pressure is mounting against fintech firm Triterras over the transactions taking place on its blockchain-based trade finance platform Kratos.
In its 16th annual Global Risks Report, the World Economic Forum has stressed the inequalities and challenges that countries and their exporters face in their recovery from the pandemic.
Senior reporter John Basquill also provides a closer analysis of a new Make UK and PwC report looking at British manufacturers’ main risks this year, and explains why the new UK-EU trade agreement ranks top of their concerns.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
British manufacturers say that adapting to a new trading relationship with the EU poses the greatest risk to their 2021 business plans, despite the two parties agreeing a last-gasp trade deal in late December.
Bankers have told GTR that if the newly rolled out African Continental Free Trade Area is to be successful, countries must address more nuanced non-tariff barriers and build regional value chains.
In other news, legal experts say they don’t expect an easing off of US sanctions penalties under the incoming Biden administration.
Meanwhile, reporter Maddy White provides analysis of GTR’s most read stories in 2020, in what proved to be a chaotic year for trade and trade finance.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
International banks are being urged to cut ties to three meat trading companies in Brazil, after an anti-corruption investigation accused the trio of contributing to deforestation in the Amazon.
As US President-elect Joe Biden readies to enter the White House next month, one topic he will need to address is the tough economic sanctions imposed on Iran by the Trump administration, which has crippled the Middle Eastern state’s economy.
In other news, trade finance products are being exploited by criminal groups to launder funds and support terrorist activity, according to a landmark report from an influential financial crime standards-setting body.
Meanwhile, fintech company MonetaGo has partnered with Singapore-based trade technology platform GUUD to implement its trade finance fraud prevention solution across Asia.
Senior reporter John Basquill also provides a closer analysis after banks in Singapore unveil tougher commodity finance standards.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Singapore’s High Court has sided with Goodwood Associates in a dispute with another oil company over a missed US$1.5mn payment.
In a new statement, development banks have pledged to change their trade finance activities to help achieve the UN’s sustainable development goals, but have avoided hard transition targets for fossil fuel financing.
JP Morgan has become the first validation agent in the global legal entity identifier system, after the role was created last month.
Meanwhile, guest interviewee Louis Taylor, UKEF's chief executive, discusses the various ways export credit agencies have reacted to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Executives from Vitol and Trafigura have said their access to trade finance remains strong, despite bank nervousness following a string of fraud scandals in Singapore’s commodities sector.
A new government inquiry has found that the Department for International Trade and UK Export Finance are “not yet doing enough to identify and help the businesses of tomorrow to export”.
US authorities have imposed sanctions on a Singapore-based energy trader, accusing it of breaching restrictions on trade with Iran by purchasing oil worth millions of dollars.
Reporter Maddy White also explains why US banks are more exposed to the financial risks associated with the transition to a lower carbon economy than they previously thought.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Companies may be required to disclose details of their supply chain finance programmes, after an influential US standards-setting body agreed to examine investor concerns over a lack of transparency.
US banks are more exposed to the financial risks associated with the transition to a lower carbon economy than they previously thought, a new report has found.
UN forecasts suggest global trade is undergoing a “frail recovery” after a major slump in Q2, with recovery boosted by surging Chinese exports and fresh economic activity in Europe and east Asia.
Senior reporter John Basquill also provides a closer analysis after two Hong Kong-based oil traders say banks have reacted to the fraud scandal in Singapore’s commodities finance sector by restricting credit to the wider market, resulting in substantial financial losses.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Two Hong Kong-based oil traders say banks have reacted to the fraud scandal in Singapore’s commodities finance sector by restricting credit to the wider market, resulting in substantial financial losses.
In other news, the risk of sovereign default is growing across Africa because of higher debt levels and currency risk.
Elsewhere, we turn our attention to the US presidential race between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, and look at what the election result would mean for the country’s trade policy.
Meanwhile reporter Maddy White explains why the Belt and Road Initiative may hamper Chinese President Xi Jinping’s plans for his country to go carbon neutral by 2060.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
A new report from security think tank RUSI warns against a blanket approach to free trade zones, but says many risk exposing banks to trade-based money laundering, as well drugs, weapons and counterfeit goods trafficking.
Oswald Kuyler, the newly appointed managing director of the Digital Standards Initiative, spoke to GTR about efforts to scale up the digitalisation of trade in Asia.
In other news, Singapore’s financial regulator has called for a move away from paper-based trade transactions in a bid to reduce fraud, after a series of high-profile scandals in the city state’s commodities sector.
Last month, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced a goal of carbon neutrality for his country by 2060.
However, the move has been met with scepticism from experts, given that Chinese creditors have given billions of dollars to fossil fuel projects around the world through the country’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Senior reporter John Basquill also provides a closer analysis after a group of major banks launch a blockchain-based registry for trade finance transactions in Singapore.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
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Host Felix Thompson gives a breakdown of the major stories in trade and trade finance news this week.
Blockchain trade finance initiative Contour has now left beta, bringing the decentralised, digital trade finance platform into full live production.
UK businesses are largely optimistic about growth prospects over the medium term, with business confidence higher now than this time last year, according to new data from Santander.
A group of major banks are hoping that a new blockchain-based registry of trade finance transactions will put a stop to the fraudulent practices that have plagued Singapore’s commodities trading sector this year.
Reporter Maddy White also explains why hundreds of thousands of seafarers are stuck at sea, and how the situation could pose significant problems for supply chains and trade.
Music credit to Kevin MacLeod for his track Loopster, taken from incompetech.com. Licensed under creative commons by attribution 3.0 license. Further music credit to Sunrise Drive by South London HiFi. Licensed under creative commons Attribution 4.0 License. Music promoted by CopyrightFree.org
- Visa fler
