Fair to say this year’s Splash-sponsored Posidonia was rammed – organisers begging authorities to expand the exhibition center to accommodate the sensational demand, while the parties were on a euphoric scale we haven’t witnessed for close to a generation. With the benefit of hindsight, the sense of euphoria experienced at this year’s Greek jamboree does hold, for me, a mighty amount of symbolism and similarities with the Posidonia of 2008. In my book – as regular readers will know – there are only two must-attend global shipping exhibitions, and maddeningly they both occur within three months of each other every two years. Posidonia 2008 was an immense shipping orgy. Little did we know at the time that we were Cinderellas at the ball. As I rocked up in Hamburg for SMM that September, Lehman Brothers collapsed ushering in the global financial crisis and a lost decade for shipping fortunes. I can’t help wondering if history is about to repeat. The fundamentals for the world economy do not look too strong with debt levels in many key economies such as the US, China and across much of Europe approaching levels that ought to set off 2008-style alarms. Likewise, shipping has been earning fantastic amounts of money this year but there are so many caveats at play that could spoil the party at any moment. It’s always easier to be a bear than a bull, but my advice would be to cash in some of your shipping exposure right about now. Assets look way overpriced and any recession for the sector will be brutal, just like the years following the global financial crisis. Perhaps I need to create a Posidonia Euphoria Index? Contents Front page: Dawn of the shorefarerEditor’s Comment: Why euphoria at this year’s Posidonia has me worriedJune 2024 ReviewMarkets TankersMarkets Dry BulkMarkets ContainersAnalyst AbstractMonthly BrokerFeature: The Red Sea shipping crisis and EgyptInterview: Casimir MorobéDataOpinion: Why supply and demand forecasts have become so difficult TagsSplash Extra Archive Splash Extra June 2024