Τρίτη 18 Μαρτίου 2014

1991/2014 - 'CONFRONTING A NEW CHALLENGE

The cyclicality of shipping business is forcing, during its low periods, many unprepared companies to step out of the business game and left others wounded. It’s a challenge!

In every challenge those who are fittest and better armoured have a better chance to survive or win.

In 1991 the BDI and the freight market condition was about at the same levels as it is today.

Shipowners were again challenged by low freight rates, cutting throat competition, oversupply of tonnage and lack of ship finance.

Since 1991, Marasco Marine provides light to carry (reduced cost) but strong (efficient), armours which enable our clients to cope and last longer challenging - battle - periods, at logical, tailor made costs.

Twenty three years is the time we sharpen our skills confronting new challenges, every day, tirelessly, offering well designed Hull & Machinery Policies, Piracy and War risk, P&I, Crew Medical and Health P&I buyback plans, Yacht, Open Cargo Policies, Dangerous cargoes and of course Charterers liabilities, just to mention few of our numerous Marine related risk insurance policies.

Claims for Particular Average, Total loss, General Average etc have been paid diligently with our co coordinated actions and professional advices.

Not all vessels are the same and not all companies have the same needs and risk taking capacity. However sometimes they are treated as such. You see, in our times the tendency is to homogeneous products and homogeneous services.

Consider this. What would better cover your assets from financial losses in case of accident? A usual homogeneous insurance product (policy) or a tailor made Marasco Marine solution? Is your Insurance premium buying the most cover it can buy or buys cover under terms which could be manageable in exchange of a rebate?

The challenge is yours but you don’t have to confront it alone.

Kind regards.

Marasco Marine Ltd.
Anastasios Maraslis
Managing Director.

Tel; +30 210 4180000 (ext.101)
Fax;+30 210 4529505


info@marasco-marine.com
www.marasco-marine.com



 

Κυριακή 9 Μαρτίου 2014

'RISK TAKERS'-A HIGH-LEVEL VIEW OF SHIPPING INDUSTRY OPPORTUNITIES’.


                         Business Article written by Mr. Anastasios Maraslis
                                         S.T.I.C's CEO/President.
                               MARASCO MARINE's/Managing Director.
 
Risk Takers. Let’s face it. This is in fact what all investors are.

There is no investment which can bring returns without taking some risk, except one, and that is Knowledge.

This is why Fund Managers, Financial Advisors, Wall Street Gurus are highly remunerated and their annual hefty success bonuses exceed the wildest dreams of most ambitious and well paid executives.

Bonuses flying at the range of few hundred millions us dollars to one or two billion! Investors’ usual critical questions are; Where to invest and When?

Two questions which demand knowledge, expert analysis and wise answers.

Fund Managers and Financial Advisors usually have the knowledge and expertise to know the right answers to these troubleshooting questions.

The last two years they have focused in one of the most profitable but also risky (due to its cyclicality) investment options, which is the Shipping industry!

Shipping has been the talk of the day since 2012 as it is obviously a good investment opportunity, now the freight market and vessels values remain at historical low levels.

This is why Private-equity and hedge funds are accumulating shipping debt at the fastest pace since they began buying the risky loans from banks in 2012.

It can’t be unnoticed that about us$ 5 billion in shipping loans has changed hands in the past year, according to estimates by AMA Capital Partners LLC, a fund manager and adviser in New York.

Investor demand is driving prices as high as 90 cents on the dollar, from 70 to 80 cents a year ago. Funds are betting ship prices that collapsed as much as 80 percent in five years will rebound from historic lows.

Shipping is a tangible and global business.

Investing in Shipping - buying shares in Ship-Owning companies (SVP’s) - is a tax free investment (at fund’s level) and despite the risks involved and asset values depreciation in a bad freight market environment, where the demand for tonnage is low, the vessels always retain part of their value, the scrap value, in case of a distress sale in a catastrophic market or vessel’s age being too old.

Investors in shipping anticipate combining income returns on their investment. One is the income deriving from the trading and vessels management and the other is from the sale and purchase gains, when the assets are liquidated at appreciated prices, in a good freight market, where the demand for tonnage is brisk.

To get a fairly good idea about Shipping investment opportunities we should look at the price of a Capesize - the largest type of dry bulk carrier -which rose 50 percent in the past year to $44.5 million, that is 29 percent of the 2008 peak of $153.8 million.

In view of high profit opportunities new specialized Private-equity firms have been established, like Starfleet Navigation Limited - teamed by highly experienced shipping and investment professionals- which are willing to take ownership of the assets and put it to work while they wait for prices to appreciate.

Having said that it would be an omission not to mention that in view of the optimism prevailing amongst the funds that are buying shipping loans there few that are less familiar with shipping, if not at all, they are newbies and the risks they take might be proven an expensive lesson.

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