STX Group Mulls China Listing

STX Group is paving the way for a potential listing of its shipbuilding units in China. The new holding company STX Dalian Holdings will take control of STX Dalian Shipbuilding, STX Dalian Heavy Industries and STXDalian Marine Engineering, with plans of an eventual listing either in Shanghai or Hong Kong in 2011. Last year, STX Dalian Shipbuilding secured a 9 year loan of RM 2.85 billion (USD 417 million) from China Construction bank and another unnamed Chinese bank at 6.14%. Continue Reading

A Silver Lining in the Bond Market

For the fortunate few, there lies the silver lining in the bond market. Records were shattered in 2009 in the Asian shipping bond arena with over USD 7.26 billion in new issuances. This is a historical high which represented an over 350% increase from USD 1.59 billion in 2008. Clearly, the need for capital has never been stronger as companies grit their teeth against the harsh operating environment.

Transactions in the Asian shipping bond market ran the gamut from the simplicity of straight unsecured issues to the complexity of Islamic debentures. Korean shipping companies top the list, by issuing bonds with 1-3 year maturity and interest rates of 7-8%. Hyundai Merchant Marine, Hanjin Shipping, STX Pan Ocean, SK Shipping, Korea Line and EUKOR Car Carriers have all tapped the bond market more than once this year, having raised over USD 2.9 billion in total. Top Korean issuer HMM raised KRW 1.06 trillion (USD 899.9 million) through eight bond issuances between February to November this year. Continue Reading

Paying Their Due

Second only to the eternal question of where the freight markets will head these days is the question of whether the existing orderbook will be built and financed. Therefore we thought it worth a look at some recent newbuilding finance deals and some recent order cancellations to allow readers a chance to observe emerging trends firsthand – we welcome your feedback and input as well, so please feel free to drop us an email or give us a call if you have other views or deals you would like to discuss.

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