Logistics Weekly

On 23 Oct NEA served notices under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act on 10 Singapore-based companies, which the Straits Times and Business Times headlines say include Asia Pulp & Paper and Wilmar. Earlier notices went to 7 firms (17 Oct) and 3 more (19 to 20 Oct); these are separate sets of recipients. Singapore will also form an expert panel and has appointed Davinder Singh Chambers as adviser on the probes. Separately, TSH Resources reported 274 hot spots within its estate boundaries after SGX queries. The shift is from complainant to regulator, and suppliers with palm, pulp or timber links in these groups carry compliance and reputational exposure (our inference).

NEA forecast the 24-hour PSI in the unhealthy band, 101 to 190, for 19 Oct (CNA and Straits Times). PM2.5 readings were normal overnight on 22 to 23 Oct, then CNA reported unhealthy air across Singapore again on 24 Oct (single source). MOM says employers should adjust outdoor work to hourly PM2.5 readings. Firefly planned to resume all Subang-Seletar flights on 22 Oct; whether that happened is not reported.

The Straits Times (19 Oct) and Mothership (20 Oct) report that the two countries will work towards a strategic partnership, with cooperation including energy security, supply-chain resilience and trade. This is stated intent, not a signed upgrade. Our inference, not stated by the sources, is that it deepens a Gulf supply relationship at a time when Gulf corridors are in question.

Business Times (24 Oct, single source) reports that Singapore's central gas buyer called Indonesia an 'important partner' amid an export-review warning, and analysts warn it could lift power prices. No terms, volumes or dates are published. CNA analysts read sharp remarks by Indonesian politicians as largely aimed at a domestic audience, and Minister Shanmugam said on 20 Oct that Singapore appreciates President Prabowo's efforts. No source links the gas review to the haze notices.

Antara (21 Oct) reports 314,124 acute respiratory infection cases from fires in 65 districts and 477 emergency oxygen shelters across seven provinces. A VnExpress item carried on 20 Oct cited more than 283,000 cases; the outlets and measures may differ, so the gap is not a clean trend. NASA FIRMS two-day hotspot counts over Sumatra and Kalimantan were 20,439 (2.3 times baseline) on 23 Oct and 17,923 (2.0 times) on 24 Oct. Indonesia's Forestry Ministry has sanctioned 32 companies and 11 corporations have been named suspects.

Saudi Arabia says it intercepted a missile aimed at Riyadh and blasts were heard in the capital (CNA, 20 Oct). The Saudi flagship investment conference was pushed to 2027 (CNA). Local authorities' toll for a strike on a Yemen camp rose from 50 to 73 (BBC), and they attribute it to the Houthis. Antara (single source) reports Riyadh airport closed on 18 Oct and Qatar Airways and Emirates cutting services; that source does not name who carried out the attacks. Ministers met in Istanbul on 24 Oct on Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb. For Singapore, the exposure is Gulf air-cargo routing and fuel cost pass-through.

DR Congo's outbreak spread to an eighth province (DW, SCMP). Kenya rose from 7 to 8 cases (DW, 19 Oct) and announced a second death on 23 Oct, with Kenyan authorities saying there is no evidence of community spread. Nigeria's first reported case, in Abuja, matches the DR Congo strain (NST, Guardian). Singapore steps up surveillance of three infectious diseases from 31 Oct; the captured report does not name them or mention Ebola. Crew and cargo routing from affected African points is the supply-chain question.

Gulf oil shipments were above 24 million barrels a day in the week to 18 Oct, against a 23.3 million prewar average (gCaptain and Maritime Executive). gCaptain reports an IEA figure of more than $37 a barrel for Gulf-to-Asia crude shipping, over five times prewar. Brent quotes this week ranged from about $100 to $120 depending on outlet and date. Maritime Executive links the oil-price jump to Houthi strikes and Iranian shipping attacks. Separately, Iran's Guards claimed seven vessels hit in 24 hours (22 to 23 Oct), which the US dismissed; three outlets corroborate that the claim was made, not that the strikes happened. Planners should price Gulf-origin cargo on freight and cover, and not assume that flat-price moves capture the exposure. UKMTO says most ship attacks go unreported, while Iran's claims appear inflated, so count-based risk signals are unreliable in both directions.

OilPrice, citing Vitol, reports high-sulphur fuel oil flows through Hormuz at least 800,000 tonnes a month below February levels, and says Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries remove about another 1 million tonnes a month (no date given for that figure). OilPrice also reports sulphur up from about $500 to above $800 a tonne since the conflict began, and relays an S&P Global warning of a food-security channel. Review bunker cover for grade availability and delivered-quote spreads, not only flat price. Fertiliser and diesel costs pass into regional food prices with a lag.

On 21 to 23 Oct the US sanctioned a law firm, shipping agents and nine vessels, linked to Iran's shadow fleet (gCaptain, Maritime Executive). Splash247 alone says the agents are in Singapore and Dubai. In the same period President Trump waived several Russia sanctions (BBC), US Energy Secretary Wright said sanctioned tankers can be refurbished and returned to legal trade (gCaptain, Maritime Executive), and a Greek tanker sailed for the US with Russian diesel (Maritime Executive). Rules are being set by exception and bilateral deal, which erodes the predictability Singapore's service layer depends on. Counterparties should settle their compliance position before taking any Russian-origin cargo.

Loadstar reports about 63 per cent of Far East-Europe capacity is back via Suez, though many services still use the Cape on return legs (reported 21 to 22 Oct). Gemini plans a full Suez return by Q1 2027, which is an aim, not a fact. gCaptain and OilPrice both report a Qatari LNG cargo making a rare Red Sea transit to Europe. Meanwhile Houthi-Saudi strikes continued. The Suez return is exposed to reversal. Planning dates are Gemini's late-November reorganisation and any carrier routing notices before 31 Oct. The link from Suez reversal to Singapore bunching is our inference.

Rheinmetall and MSC are taking over a Romanian shipyard for 138 million euros, and Rheinmetall says Mangalia will become a 'dual-use' yard (Maritime Executive, Splash247, Loadstar). Loadstar's headline asks whether the purchase is building a military shipping unit at MSC. Separately, SCMP reports the EU is weighing a sanctions reprieve for Chinese firm Yusha in return for lifting export curbs on German supplier Sindlhauser, to protect ASML's chip supply. The resilience question for planners is shipyard and newbuild slot availability if capacity is shared with non-commercial work. The chip-supply item is a signal of how export controls are being traded.

A.P. Moller Capital is acquiring Portek International from Mitsui (Loadstar, Maritime Executive); price and terms are not in the capture. Oman is ending a Maersk-linked Salalah concession in 2028, and Colombo concessions are being eyed. A Loadstar opinion piece argues Singapore has slipped behind Shanghai and Ningbo-Zhoushan, though no ranking data are in the capture. MPA headlines a 17 Oct ethanol bunkering operation as the world's largest, which is MPA's own claim, and the Singapore-registered ammonia dual-fuel carrier Terra Clove was christened in Ulsan with delivery due in November. Ownership and concession shifts at competitor ports bear on transhipment competition over several years, not weeks.

DW reports patches are available (22 Oct). Singapore's cybersecurity chief told firms to 'act now' (Business Times, 23 Oct), and Rappler and Taipei Times report millions of hacking attempts. Edge and remote-access products such as PAN-OS, Ivanti Connect Secure and BeyondTrust Remote Support also appear on vulnerability lists. Check suppliers' portals and any remote-access appliances on logistics networks.