Shipping Tycoon Angelicoussis Expects Trump Bump, Not Trade War
November 18 2016 - 10:40AM
Dow Jones News
Greek shipping magnate John Angelicoussis expects
President-elect Donald Trump to generate new business for the
ailing shipping industry through infrastructure spending and
increased energy production.
"There is no question that he is going to be positive for
shipping in terms of infrastructure expansion. The U.S. needs a
hell of a lot of infrastructure," Mr. Angelicoussis told The Wall
Street Journal in a rare interview.
Mr. Angelicoussis has three separate companies operating a fleet
of 133 supertankers, dry bulk vessels and liquefied-natural-gas
carriers, worth around $6.9, billion, the world's sixth largest in
terms of value, according to maritime data provider
VesselsValue.
Most of the ships are chartered to oil and commodity majors
including Exxon Mobil Corp., BHP Billiton Ltd. and Cargill Corp.
The billionaire has been the top buyer of dry bulk vessels over the
past year and also splashed $1 billion for eight crude oil and LNG
tankers in June.
Mr. Trump has vowed to pump billions into projects to upgrade
U.S. infrastructure. But his pledge to tear up global trade deals
such as the North American Free Trade Agreement and the
Trans-Pacific Partnership could cause pain for shipping industry at
a time when global trade is forecast to grow by just 1.7% this
year, marking the slowest pace since the 2008 financial crisis,
according the World Trade Organization.
Mr. Angelicoussis hopes Mr. Trump won't engage in a trade war
with China. "Shipping lives off China," he said. "There will be no
winners in a trade war. We should leave them alone and continue to
trade." Since Mr. Trump's election, the Baltic Dry Index, a measure
of the cost to ship raw materials like cement, copper and iron ore,
has risen steadily, closing Thursday at a 23-month high.
Mr. Angelicoussis said Mr. Trump's promise to boost oil drilling
and tackle export regulations will benefit his tanker business with
ships bringing in heavy fuel for the U.S. market and shipping out
lighter fuel to export markets. "There will be far more activity in
oil and gas," he said.
Mr. Angelicoussis said he expects the Organization of the
Petroleum Exporting Countries to reach an agreement to cut
production at their Nov. 30 meeting.
"Brent is low at around $46 [per barrel] because most expect no
agreement," he said. "But I think there will be one because OPEC
needs it. A price of $50 to $60 is good for the Arabs because they
can make money, but not overdo it."
At that price he predicts China and India will continue building
their oil reserves, saying China wants to double its 250 million
barrels and India seeks to substantially boost its 100 million
barrels in reserve.
Write to Costas Paris at costas.paris@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 18, 2016 10:25 ET (15:25 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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