Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1416377
7 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 OCTOBER 2021 NEWS aging to avoid congestion. "There are times when we are working flat out but in general, Mediter- ranean ports seem to be holding up well." However, Montebello says that the blockage of the Suez Canal last March in the Evergreen inci- dent had a direct impact on the Freeport, indicating the sensitiv- ity of the global supply chain to singular events. "Across the globe, schedule re- liability in ports has dropped to its lowest level at around 33%," he says. The Freeport has increased its tariffs by 3.4%, which has caused consternation among industrial- ists and wholesalers. Montebello says the rate hike is linked to the inflation rate of the past three years in line with contractual commitments. But there are signs that the in- crease in international freight rates may slow down. A fortnight ago two large shipping compa- nies, CMA-CGM and Hapag Lloyd, announced that they will cap freight rates. 'Nightmare to find containers' Whether this will be of any con- solation to industry is another matter altogether and Chris Sul- livan, CEO Logistics at Sullivan Shipping, says there are many unpredictable factors. "COVID has led to disruptions along every level of the supply chain and with the closure of some Chinese ports many con- tainers were caught in the far east. Now that global demand has picked up we are seeing a slower turnaround of containers. For companies like ours, it has become a nightmare to find con- tainers for clients. We have had to deploy more resources and find creative solutions to accom- modate clients," Sullivan says. He adds that the biggest prob- lems are on the far east and mid- dle east routes, including India and Turkey. "I would assume the situation will persist until the Chinese New Year (February) but it is difficult to predict how it will pan out af- ter that because there are many unknown variables," he says. And business leaders are not confident the situation will re- turn to pre-COVID levels. Aurobindo's Schembri says there is no such thing as going back to normal and does not see the global economy returning to pre-COVID levels in the foresee- able future. New lessons and fresh warnings But he says COVID was a signif- icant game-changer that has also taught companies new things. "We discovered the usefulness of remote working, which employ- ers can adopt to lower costs," he says. Aquilina from Farsons is also coy on the prospects of freight costs dropping. "In practice cost increases are difficult to reverse once they're in place, even if the root causes may no longer be there. Nonetheless, we hope that, applying economic principles, costs will decline as supply catch- es up with demand in the medi- um term and international trade stabilises on a global level." Aquilina believes there is little to do to directly mitigate the sit- uation, which originates from in- ternational dynamics. However, he advocates some sort of sup- port programme to reduce the domestic logistical and freight costs. But he insists the issue goes be- yond shipping costs. "There is a looming threat resulting from growing inflationary pressures together with significant price in- creases across a wide range of raw materials, products and services," Aquilina warns. If the Christmas gift does arrive on time, it could pretty much be more expensive as well. ksansone@mediatoday.com.mt Farsons Group CEO Norman Aquilina Malta Freeport CEO Alex Montebello Chris Sullivan, CEO Logistics at Sullivan Shipping Malta Freeport has increased its tariffs by 3.4% to offset the inflation rate of the past three years in line with contractual commitments COVID-19: Woman, 35, passes away 24 new COVID-19 cases were registered on Saturday, figures published by the Health Minis- try show. A 35-year-old woman passed away while positive for COV- ID-19, with the total number of deaths stands at 459. Active cases stand at 313 af- ter 21 recoveries were regis- tered. There are currently six coro- navirus patients being cared for at Mater Dei Hospital, but none are in ITU. Until Friday, 826,504 vaccine doses were administered, of which 13,720 were booster doses. MATTHEW VELLA THE Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit has fined an online financial institution €435,576 over various money laundering breaches. Phoenix Payments, also known as Paytah, has been at the centre of regulatory and criminal investigations in sev- eral European jurisdictions, apart from facing claims from victims who made deposits through Paytah and its affili- ates. The European Fund Recov- ery Initiative (EFRI) is repre- sented the interests of victims at other hearings on Paytah and Phoenix Payments at Ar- biter for Financial Services. Paytah is owned and con- trolled by Italian national Marco Lavanna. According to the hearings before the financial ombuds- man, the company has been accused of working with il- legal payment providers and crypto-payment processors, which facilitate scam opera- tors, mainly Estonian entities, who use Paytah as a bank ac- count. Deposits from victims of the scams are systemati- cally processed through these Paytah bank accounts. EFRI is representing 12 cli- ents claiming damages of €350,000 in alleged scam payments to Paytah bank ac- counts. Following an investiga- tion, the MFSA fined Paytah €32,000 and restricted the payment processor's license. The latter appealed against the MFSA measures and filed a lawsuit against the MFSA. In its investigation, the FIAU said Phoenix Payments had failed to apply enhanced due diligence on clients posing a high or medium-high risk. All of these customers were linked to cryptocurrency, either by being a cryptocur- rency service provider or as providers of crypto exchange services and in one instance, linked to a high-risk jurisdic- tion. Crypto bank fined €435,000 by FIAU over breaches