Good morning, nice people. We have a brisk issue this morning on a calm news day as we continue to unpack PMI readings from Kuwait, Lebanon and Qatar. Speaking of Qatar, there’s another sizable QatarEnergy LNG vessel order reportedly in the works…

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- More flight cancellations as security concerns grow in Iran: German airline Lufthansa is steering away from Iraqi and Iranian airspace until tomorrow as rising tensions in the region spark security concerns, Reuters reports. The airline is also suspending flights to Amman until tomorrow and specifically Tel Aviv, Tehran, and Beirut until 12 August.

What’s happening? At least five US personnel were injured in an attack on a military base in Iraq yesterday, US officials told Reuters, in a wave of escalation they say could be linked to Iran and its allies responding to last week’s killing of senior members of militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah in Tehran and Beirut.

Several international airlines have canceled or pushed back flights to the region, especially to Lebanon. Kuwait Airways recently indefinitely halted trips to Beirut, while Germany’s Lufthansa Group and Air France have suspended flights to Beirut, as have Jordan’s Royal Jordanian, Middle East Airlines, Turkey’s SunExpress, AJet, Greece’s Aegean Airlines, and Ethiopian Airline.

Déjà vu? Global aviation saw severe disruption after Iran’s counter attack on Israel back in April that caused a dozen airlines to cancel or divert their flights.

#2- EC gives Oman the green light for Marsa LNG project: The European Commission (EC) has approved the USD 1.6 bn Marsa LNG project at Oman’s Sohar Port and Freezone, indicating that the project is unlikely to threaten competition due to its minimal impact on the European Economic Area, the Oman Observer reported earlier this week.

REFRESHER- Marsa LNG reached a Final Investment Decision (FID) and inked a sub-usufruct agreement with Oman’s Sohar Port and Freezone in April for an LNG liquefaction plant at Sohar port. The 44.5-hectare LNG liquefaction plant has a total investment ticket of USD 1.6 bn and will be powered by a 300 MWp solar plant. LNG production at the plant is set to kick off in 1Q 2028 and is primarily intended to meet LNG bunkering demand, with 80% of any remaining unsold LNG quantities taken by TotalEnergies and the remaining 20% taken by OQ.

#3- Cybersecurity company Crowdstrike could be hit with a class action lawsuit by travelers affected by delays or cancellations in last month’s widespread global computer outage, Reuters reports. Plaintiffs say the company should pay compensatory and punitive damages to anyone whose flight was disrupted due to the outage being “entirely foreseeable” on the back of prior tech-related flight groundings for Southwest Airlines other carriers in 2023. They argue hundreds were shelled out on accommodations, extra meals and alternative travel plans while travelers missed work and suffered health issues from having to sleep in airports.

Worsening woes: Delta Airlines said it planned to take legal action against CrowdStrike to get compensation for a loss of USD 500 mn after the airline was forced to cancel 6k flights over a six-day period, impacting more than 500k passengers, Reuters reports. CrowdStrike said it is “highly disappointed by Delta’s suggestion that CrowdStrike acted inappropriately and strongly rejects any allegation that it was grossly negligent or committed misconduct,” adding that “any liability by CrowdStrike is contractually capped at an amount in the single-digit [mns].”

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil prices bounced back over 1% in early morning trading on the back of stronger PMI readings from the US and Middle East supply concerns due to rising tensions, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures gained USD 0.97 reaching USD 77.27 a barrel by 03.54 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures rose 1.56% (USD 1.14) trading at USD 74.08 a barrel. Both benchmarks fell approximately 1% as global stock markets tumbled yesterday.

Outlook: “Oil seems to have clawed back some of its losses as broader concerns of a possible escalation in Middle Eastern conflict continue to add (to) apprehensions in (the) oil market. The possibility of an all-out war in (the) Middle east is getting real, threatening global supplies,” Phillip Nova senior market analyst Priyanka Sachdeva told the newswire.

#2- The Drewry World Container Index fell 1% to USD 5,736 per 40-ft container last week, according to the latest index readings. Spot rates for 40ft containers are now 45% below the previous pandemic peak of USD 10,377 in September 2021, but 304% higher than pre-pandemic rates of USD 1,420.

#3- Baltic index recovers: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segment — increased 0.1% to 1,677 yesterday, buoyed by the bigger size segment, Reuters reported. Capesize rose 1% to 2,351, while the panamax segment fell 0.5% to 1,697 points. The smaller supramax index dipped 0.9% to 1,330 points.

DATA POINT-

Dubai Chamber of Commerce businesses reported AED 145.9 bn in exports and re-exports in 1H 2024, and issued over 372k certificates of origin, according to a statement. The GCC region led as the top export destination with AED 78.9 bn in trade, representing 53.9% of the total. Non-GCC MENA countries followed, accounting for 23.9% with AED 34.9 bn, while African markets were the third top destination with AED 14.5 bn, accounting for 9.9% of the total.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Saudi Arabia will host the Saudi Warehousing and Logistics Expo on Monday, 2 September to Wednesday, 4 September in Riyadh. The event will bring together leaders in the supply chain, warehousing, and logistics industry from across the Kingdom to discuss investments, trade, geopolitical risks, and localized manufacturing.

Egypt will host the Egypt International Airshow on Tuesday, 3 September to Thursday, 5 September in El Alamein. The event will host a range of discussions touching on industrialization, digitalization, and globalization in the regional commercial aviation sector. During the event, aircrafts and innovative aerospace products, and services will be showcased.

Saudi Arabia will host SkyMove MENA on Tuesday, 10 September and Wednesday, 11 September in Riyadh. The event will gather global industry stakeholders, experts, and service providers to discuss challenges in the regional aviation industry.

Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.

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