There was no sign of a shipping breakthrough in Hormuz this week. If anything, the strait became more dangerous and closed. Donald Trump has been discussing his war with Iran with Xi Jinping while on a state visit to Beijing. 

Federal prosecutors filed criminal charges this week against Singapore-based shipmanager Synergy Marine over the 2024 collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, two years after the containership Dali struck the span and killed six people.

Auction prices for priority Panama Canal transits climbed to an unprecedented $4m per vessel as geopolitical turmoil in the Middle East reshapes global shipping patterns and sends operators scrambling for alternative routes.

This week we carried not one, but two Maritime CEO interviews – both about intrepid adventurers. First up was Lars Jensen, container shipping’s most famous soothsayer, who is loading up his camper van for an 18-month voyage around Africa, and then we chatted with Stuart Macdonald, a mountain guide, who is readying to row across the Atlantic solo for charity and is seeking a maritime firm to come onboard and sponsor his boat’s naming rights. 

This week’s Splash Wrap podcast – carried below – looks at where maritime tech is getting things wrong, arguing that the industry is shifting toward a need for clarity over complexity, where the real competitive advantage lies in having a clear decision framework rather than the largest digital stack.