#Ports&Shipping –The latest IMDO Weekly Shipping Market Review includes the following stories as detailed below.

Irish Economy: Competitiveness -The latest IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2013 saw Ireland rise three places to number 17 in overall competitiveness rankings, with significant improvements government finances, growth and inflation.

Container Market: Scrapping - Although analysts have become more pessimistic about the supply-demand balance in the coming two years, Macquarie Capital is advising investors to take a new look at the container sector, arguing that ship-owners will have an incentive to scrap vessels at a faster rate than anticipated.

Dry Bulk Market: Outlook - Golden Ocean chief executive Herman Billung says that although the dry bulk sector has got through the worst of the downturn, the weak market fundamentals should flush additional volumes of old tonnage out of the fleet and prevent additional newbuilding orders. However beyond 2013, Mr Billung is optimistic about dry bulk seaborne transportation growth and believes the industry could have a bullish outlook by 2015 on the back of reduced fleet growth and a steady increase in cargo demand.

For more of the above visit the IMDO Weekly Markets Review (Week 22) and also on Afloat.ie's dedicated Ports & Shipping section

#ShippingReview: Over the last fortnight Jehan Ashmore has reported from the shipping scene where the fodder crisis, the worst in over 50 years has led to ports witness unprecedented levels of animal feed imports.

New Zealand ferry operator Interislander which has extended the charter of Dublin based ICG group ro-pax ferry Kaitaki is to receive a major refurbishment by Newry based MJM Marine.

Foynes is to welcome three cruise callers this season, starting with Voyages of Discovery's 15,396 tonnes Voyager.

Malta hosted the 6th European Maritime Day, where a conference of experts from all maritime sectors from around Europe and also present was Dinny McGinley TD, Minister of State who made a speech that was welcomed by the Marine Institute.

Vice President Siim Kallas European Commissioner for Mobility and Transport, announced the publication of a regulation proposal on market access to port services and financial transparency, as well as a new communication on ports policy.

Another maiden port of call to Dublin Port was by the 95,000 tonnes MSC Magnifica, the 'Musica' class vessel built in 2010 is operated by MSC Cruises, which last year started calling to Irish ports.

European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO) has appointed Isabelle Ryckbost as the new Secretary General, succeeding Patrick Verhoeven.

Also heard at the 10th agm of the ESPO conference held in Varna, Romania, was mixed reaction over the new ports policy on regulation and communication announced by the European Commission.

#PortRegulation – At the 10th a.g.m. of the European Sea Ports Organisation (EPSO) conference held in Varna, Romania, the main debate centred on the new ports policy regulation and communication of the European Commission, which were issued last week.

Commission Vice-President Siim Kallas was present in Varna to introduce the proposals.

Initial reactions from stakeholders demonstrated that the proposed regulation on market access and financial transparency of ports is being received with mixed feelings.

This is also the basis of ESPO's first response. "On the one hand we recognise the fact that the regulation proposal makes a first important step towards creating greater financial transparency", said ESPO Secretary General Patrick Verhoeven.

"We further appreciate that the proposal recognises the central role of the port authority and confirms, to some extent, its autonomy. At the same time however, the proposal attributes potentially wide-ranging competencies to other authorities and some of the proposed procedures may lead to damaging interference with the commercial freedom of ports, their ability to invest and their administrative responsibilities."

In the coming weeks, ESPO will conduct an in-depth assessment of the regulation proposal, focusing on the concrete impact it has on the diversity of its membership. ESPO invites Parliament and Council to take due consideration of this assessment during the forthcoming co-decision process.

During the conference, ESPO also presented the second edition of its port performance dashboard, which reports on indicators in the field of market trends, logistics, socio-economic impact, port governance and environmental management.

Next year, ESPO is heading to the Baltic Sea, where the Port of Gothenburg will be hosting the 11th ESPO conference, on 15-16 May.

#EUPortsPolicy – Vice President Siim Kallas, European Commissioner for Mobility and Transport, has announced the publication of a regulation proposal on market access to port services and financial transparency, as well as a new communication on ports policy.

European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO) welcomes the fact that both initiatives value the important role that seaports play for the European economy. This complements the Commission's earlier initiative to give ports a central position in the Trans-European Transport Networks.

ESPO is however concerned about the potential implications the regulation proposal may have on the autonomy of port authorities.

"We appreciate that the Commission intends to recognise the central role of port authorities and we support the provisions of the regulation that aim to create greater financial transparency", said ESPO Secretary General Patrick Verhoeven, "At the same time, we are concerned about the competencies that the regulation attributes to other authorities and the impact some of the proposed procedures may have on the commercial freedom of ports and their ability to invest."

The regulation proposal excludes cargo handling and passenger services from market access rules. ESPO believes that an inclusive, non-legislative approach, covering all port services, would have been more balanced and proportional in this respect.

On 29 May, the General Assembly of ESPO will adopt a formal position, prior to the organisation's annual conference in Varna, where the new proposals will be discussed for the first time with industry stakeholders.

In the weeks following the conference, ESPO intends to further analyse the regulation proposal, taking into account the impact on the diversity of its membership.

"We will then formulate a number of concrete recommendations for the forthcoming debate in Parliament and Council. We also look forward to exchanging views with other European stakeholder organisations, to see where we might have points in common", concluded Patrick Verhoeven.

#MaritimeDay - Malta has recently hosted the 6th European Maritime Day, (see Afloat.ie's Water Rats), where a conference of experts from all maritime sectors from around Europe had gathered.

Delegates discussed how to promote the tourism industry and maintain its position not only as a sector for sustainable growth, but also as a means to help in the restoration of the wider economy and a key contributor to the EU's Blue Growth agenda.

The European Maritime Day was organised by the European Commission (DG for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries) in partnership with the Maltese Ministry for the Economy, Investment and Small Business, and the Maltese Ministry for Tourism.

The Marine Institute welcomed the speech made by Dinny McGinley's TD, Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht at the conference, where he said "In Ireland, our ocean is a national asset, supporting a diverse marine economy, with vast potential to tap into a €1,200 billion global marine market for seafood, tourism, oil and gas, marine renewable energy, and new applications for health, medicine and technology"

"Blue Growth is one of the priority areas in our Presidency programme and in particular the development of an Action Plan for the Atlantic Strategy, which will be launched in Galway later this week by Commissioner Damanaki. The Action Plan identifies a range of actions designed to deliver smart, sustainable and socially inclusive growth and jobs, included in the area of maritime and coastal tourism," he said.

Minister McGinley further highlighted the importance of The Integrated Marine Plan – Harnessing our Ocean Wealth, launched last year by the Irish Government. This Plan is providing momentum for growth in the marine area in Ireland. In particular he spoke of the projects including the development of the National Necklace of Lighthouses which is being organised by The Commissioners of Irish Lights and Fáilte Ireland.

The Minister also spoke of the projects including the Wild Atlantic Way – Ireland's first long distance driving route along the west coast covering 2,500 kilometre route and the Sail West project which was an INTERREG IVA cross boarder funded programme that has now been successfully implemented by Donegal County Council as lead partners.

Mrs Caroline Bocquel, Director of Corporate Services at the Marine Institute also chaired a workshop entitled "The EU Integrated Maritime Policy and human health and well-being: What's the connection?".

The workshop focused on the relationships between marine environmental health and human health. Speakers highlighted the need for a coordinated oceans and human health research programme in Europe, addressing real public health challenges associated with our interactions with the seas presented in the context of the EU Integrated Maritime Policy.

The European Maritime Day is an annual event celebrated on the 20th May since 2008. It was established jointly by the European Council, the European Parliament and European Commission as part of the EU's Integrated Maritime Policy, which was launched in 2007.

The conference event is organised in a different European country each year where it aims to highlight the crucial role that oceans and seas play in the everyday life of all EU citizens.

Countries that have hosted this event include Brussels 2008, Rome 2009, Gijon 2010, Gdansk 2011, and Gothenburg 2012.

#ShippingReview: Over the last fortnight Jehan Ashmore has reported from the shipping scene where plans for the expansion of Galway Harbour are "99 per cent ready to go".

The increasing strategic importance of Cork Harbour as a base for the oil and gas energy sector was clearly evident with the call of the unusual looking 'X-Bow' platform supply vessel Bourbon Clear.

A High Court judge expressed concern for the crew of Clipper Faith, a Belize registered 19,000 tonnes cargo ship detained in Dublin Port who have not been paid since late last year.

As referred above the Clipper Faith which has been in the port since March shifted berths so to accommodate French cruiseship Le Boreal to the East-Link toll-bridge.

The 'cruise' berth is situated much closer up the Liffey and is where larger visiting cruiseships are to moor as Dublin Port plans to develop deep-water berths for a proposed new cruise terminal.

Irish Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) builder Red Bay Boats is exhibiting one of its giant 16–metre Pilot Boat Stormforce RIBs at next month's Seaworks commercial exhibition in Southampton.

On the same day of the historic call of the dual serving liner and cruiseship Queen Mary 2 off Dun Laoghaire, expedition cruiseship Serenissima docked within the harbour walls, while another caller was made by Artania to neighbouring Dublin Port.

#TrainForTrade- UNCTAD Candidates have successfully completed final dissertations last month for the TrainForTrade Port Training Programme in Ghana and which also includes Tanzania, as previously reported on Afloat.ie

The dissertations were defended before panels of experts that included representatives from UNCTAD and the Port of Cork, as well as senior managers from Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA).

The graduates are middle-level managers from public and private entities operating at the ports of Tema and Takoradi.

UNCTAD's Port Training Programme supports port communities in developing countries in their efforts to provide efficient and competitive port management services.

The English-speaking network of the Port Training Programme is supported by Irish Aid, the Dublin Port Company, the Port of Cork, and the Belfast Harbour Commissioners.

#DetainedBulker- A High Court judge has expressed concern for the crew of a Belize registered 19,000 tonnes cargo ship detained in Dublin Port since last March and who have not been paid since late last year.

The 17 crew, represented by the International Transport Workers Federation, had brought proceedings against the owner of the MV Clipper Faith for unpaid wages of approximately $320,000.

The ship's owner, the Liberian-registered Afternoon Maritime, said it lacked funds to pay the crew, who are largely from Russia and Ukraine. For more on this story, The Irish Times has a report.

#Ports&Shipping –The latest IMDO Weekly Shipping Market Review includes the following stories as detailed below.

Irish Economy: Service sector accelerates -Ireland's services sector expanded at its fastest rate since the new year in April, aided by exports beyond the euro zone, a survey showed last week, in a boost for Irish growth prospects after weak manufacturing survey data. The NCB Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) of services sector activity rose to 55.2 from 52.3 in March, comfortably above the 50 line that separates growth from contraction.

Container Market: Deliveries hamper recovery- Withdrawals and void sailings on the Asia-Europe trade lane are not enough to offset new tonnage deliveries and improve vessel utilisation rates, according to Alphaliner. Its latest research shows that 20 new ships of between 8,500 teu and 16,000 teu will be introduced during the second quarter of 2013, adding to seven new vessels delivered in March.

Demolition: Container scrappage to beat record - Containership scrappage rates are expected to exceed previous records this year, but cellular capacity removed due to demolition will still be surpassed by a ratio of one to three by newbuilding deliveries, reported Lloyd's List citing Alphaliner.

To read more of each of the above stories and other news from the IMDO Shipping Markets Review for Week 18, click HERE to be viewed or downloaded as a PDF

#LinerQueenMary2- The eagerly awaited visit of the world's only 'liner', Cunard Line's flagship Queen Mary 2 is now just over a week away to making her first ever visit to Dublin Bay with an 'anchorage' call off Dun Laoghaire Harbour, writes Jehan Ashmore. The liner arrives next Thursday, May 16th.

The significance of the call of Queen Mary 2 or 'QM2' as she is affectionately known will no doubt generate a major draw for onlookers when she arrives on the Dublin Bay horizon from a northerly direction around 06.00hrs.

Vantage points lining the East Pier, Scotsman's Bay and beyond will be condusive to witness the sheer size of the 151,400 tonnes giant vessel as she looms towards Dun Laoghaire.

The French built liner which cost €659m (US$800 million) is currently on a trans-Atlantic voyage and is bound for her homeport of Southampton. The liner represents a link to the past of the bygone era in travelling the Atlantic in complete luxury while capturing the essence of the classic sailing voyage experience to and from New York.

Facilities are both elegant and grand and where her 2,600 passengers have no less than 14 spacious decks with all the luxury one would expect with such liner prestige and historical pedigree.

Among the amenities guests can enjoy the Canyon Ranch spa-club, the only planetarium at sea and a 3D cinema.

Queen Mary 2 will be the highlight for the Dun Laoghaire Harbour Company as the passenger liner also marks the opening of the 2013 cruise season, and where such a large vessel will provide a much needed boost to regional tourism.

The port can also look forward to a dramatic increase this season as a further dozen or so cruise calls are scheduled to bring 30,000 passengers and crew to the port, a stark contrast to last year's return to this business sector with just two calls.

Another first will be the use of the purpose built cruise liner dock pontoon, when the QM2's tenders are expected to berth at the facility in the Coal Harbour.

The QM2's predecessor of only half her size the 70,000 tonnes Queen Elizabeth II (QE2) had made two anchorage calls offshore of Dun Laoghaire Harbour as did some other well known large cruiseships more than a decade ago.

In regards to Queen Mary 2, this will be her third call to Irish waters and as with the first visit, she too made an anchorage call offshore of Dunmore East in 2005. On her  second call to Cobh in 2011 this involved berthing alongside the quay.