US-China deal to drive HK bunkering role

The phase one trade agreement signed between the US and China can revive Hong Kong’s standing as an international trading port, and points to its potential re-emergence as a supplier of bunker fuel

Hong Kong’s civil disturbances and the US-China trade war have led to the city losing ground to rival ports. Yet competition between Hong Kong and Singapore, which has enjoyed a long period of stability and dominates Asian bunker fuel supply, is “not a zero-sum game”, says Lawrence Brennan, a former navy captain who is a professor at Fordham University specialising in maritime law. “Both can and should survive and prosper.”  Hong Kong historically prospered due to its proximity to China; close enough to attract investors seeking to capitalise on the mainland’s development yet beyond the reach of the authoritarian hand of its Communist Party. With the protesters filling the streets accusing C