Sanctions
Sanctions against Russia in response to the country’s invasion of Ukraine continue to mount, while the US administration is reportedly weighing options on both Iranian and Venezuelan sanctions to address the energy gap created by restrictions on Russian oil and gas imports. Lloyd’s List examines the impact of this sanctions and the pain of them on the shipping industry and wider implications for the maritime community including finance, insurance, law and government.
Mali, Mauritania and Eritrea become the latest locations for online maritime fraud
Fraudulent ship registries and seafarer certification websites purporting to represent entirely fake government entities are multiplying across Africa, with at least three new scams uncovered by Lloyd’s List this week
Growing sanctioned trade squeezes tanker markets, but China’s appetite peaks
Sanctioned oil now accounts for about 30% of crude imports in China and India, pressuring mainstream tanker markets, according to Vortexa. But this trend may soon reverse as Chinese demand for sanctioned barrels peaks and Opec supply rises
Threats to Russian oil flows intensify but exports keep chugging along
It looks like the status quo will prevail for Russian exports of crude and products. US president Donald Trump’s threat of eventual tariffs on buyers of Russian exports is being viewed, for now, as a non-event
Malaysia pledges crackdown on illicit ship-to-ship transfers
New regulation aimed at tightening enforcement against illegal ship-to-ship oil transfers in Malaysian waters is expected to come into force by the end of this month
More than 90% of shadow fleet ships are producing insurance certificates when challenged
Data collected from European government agencies indicates that well over 90% of the shadow fleet tankers being challenged to produce evidence of insurance are responding, but none of the governments collecting that information are prepared to disclose how many are deemed to be credible
Shipping sanctions in the balance as EU mulls price cap and Trump touts Russia bill
Supporters of the bipartisan Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025 seem to think that president Trump is about to back their plans to impose 500% tariffs on countries buying Russian oil. If that goes ahead, stalling EU sanctions will likely get accelerated and pressure on Russian oil exports will be supercharged
US sanctions more ‘shadow banking’ entities facilitating Iranian oil trades
The US has slapped more sanctions on those involved in facilitating Iran’s oil exports, designating 22 entities in Hong Kong, the UAE and Türkiye
Four arrested as Dutch authorities investigate suspected shadow fleet supplier
Two directors and two managers were arrested on July 1 in an investigation by the Dutch Public Prosecution Service
The week in charts: Timor-Leste joins list of fake registries taking in sanctioned tonnage | Ras Isa vessel queue dissipates | Container fires remain significant hazard
Timor-Leste confirmed as the latest in a recent rash of new fraudulent registries being used by sanctioned vessels; The long queue of vessels waiting to discharge oil and LPG in Houthi-held Ras Isa has reduced dramatically in recent weeks amid security and sanctions risks; Lloyd’s List Intelligence casualty data shows 126 container fire incidents on board boxships since 2005
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