b'MAY 16 - JUNE 19, 2022BREAKBULK QUARTERLY 31(UNIQUEcontinued from(CLOUDScontinued from page 23) page 28)operationsandisdeepeningall supported by higher steel channels to 55 feet while wid- prices. Steel rebar prices on eningthemtosafelyhandlethe London Metals Exchange two-waytrafficofultralargehaverisenover27%since containerships. December 2021.The Port of Virginia joinsThe question remains; how-its ocean carrier and Class Iever,howlongrisingsteel railpartnersinenthusiasti- prices can absorb higher raw cally providing shippers withmaterials costs. Speculating arevolutionarysolutiontobeyondthesecondquarter thesupplychainchallengesandwhatshappeningwith oftodayandtomorrow,the Ukraine war is hard, said Capozzi said. Shippers fromBurritt.the Mediterranean to the U.S.OfficialsattheWorld WestCoastnolongerhaveSteelAssociationwouldno to be at the mercy of delaysdoubtagree.Followingthe involvedwithtransitingthemeaslygrowthprospectsof Panama Canal and congestion0.4% in 2022, the WSA sees (CHALLENGEScontin- standardsforvesselownersthemmarriedtodirtieroil- at California port facilities. steeldemandgrowingto ued from page 26) through2030.Whilemanybased fuels. As a result, slowWelookforward,he2.2% in 2023. But that pro-withinthecontainersegmentbelievethecontainerandsteaming may become a regu- said,tofurtherground- jection assumes that the war was not cause enough for con- cruiseindustrywillbenefitlar part of a voyage in orderbreakingcollaborationsthatinUkrainewillcometoan cern,theRussianinvasionoffromincreaseduseofLNGto meet the future IMO emis- redefinethesupplychaintoend during 2022, a condition Ukrainehasalsoshownhowandotheralternativecleanersions standards. Longer timethebenefitofcargoownerswhich may prove to be dubi-intertwinedtheglobalsupplyfuels. The nature of how MPVat sea will mean higher oper- lookingtodependablygetous. In any event, the WSA chainreallyis.Illciteonefleets operate throughout theatingexpensesforowners,product to destination withoutconcluded,theoutlookfor example from each country.worldwillmostlikelykeepvessel operators and shippers. undue delays. 2023 is highly uncertain.RussiaswarinUkraine has also had a severe impact onglobaltradeandsupply chains.Ukraineproduces about half of the global supply of neon gas and is currently at a production standstill. Neon gas is a critical component for laser tools used in the produc-tion of microchips. This will furtherimpactthoseindus-tries that are already dealing withcriticalsupplyshort-ages in what continues to be aglobalshortageofmicro-chips.Russiaontheother handisoneoftheworlds largestproducersofammo-niumnitrateusedprimarily asfertilizerforagricultural and as a blasting agent in the miningindustry.Evenprior totheinvasionRussiahad institutedaquotarestriction on the exports of ammonium nitrate.Currently,Russian exportshaveceasedresult-ing in the global price of this commodity having more than doubledinrecentmonths. Ifthisshortageremainsin placeitwilldirectlyimpact the agricultural industry and result in lower planted acre-age and reduced crop yields. Thisofcoursewillleadto evenhigherpricesoncon-sumers,whounfortunately are always the last link in the supply chain.Just prior to the COVID-19outbreaktheshipping industry was facing new reg-ulationsregardingfueland emissionsstandardsknown asIMO2020.Abeginning steptowardreducingCo2 emissionsfromoceangoing vessels.Atthetimeit,was consideredtobeagame changing event for the indus-try and a significant financial burdenonthepartofship-owners. The reality is that the industryandclientsadapted withlittlefanfareoroutcry as the pandemic slammed us shortly thereafter. More strin-gentregulationsintroduced by the IMO will continue with newincrementalemissions'