MARKETS LOSING THEIR BEARINGS

States have not been left unscathed by the crises that have shaken the economy since Lehman Brothers went under in September 2008.

Financiers and credit rating agencies are holding states to account over their -to-date- unsuccessful attempt to stimulate their economies through increased deficits and debt post-2009 in order to avoid a collapse.

The markets have lost confidence in Western politicians' ability to implement the painful but essential structural reforms required for a return to balanced budgets.

What to do? Reduce the budget deficit to calm the markets or continue to encourage minimal growth to avoid worsening unemployment figures and the type of social unrest seen recently in Greece and Spain? read more

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MARIE DOUCEDAME ARTIST IN RESI­DENCE ABOARD THE DURANDE

Illustrator of the 2009 comic book "Marseille Fret", Marie Doucedame has just completed a nearly four-week journey aboard the Marfret Durande, embarking on 3rd August in Sète and leaving the ship in Cartagena on the 27th. read more

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MARFRET-NISA PARTNERSHIP FOR ALGERIA

Faced with the drop in the ro-ro freight market, Marfret and NISA have decided to set up a joint service on the Marfret Niolon, the capacity and costs of which are shared 50/50. read more

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MARFRET NEW ZEALAND INVADED BY 8000 FRENCH NATIONALS !

Friday September 9th in Auckland New Zealand marks the opening of the 4 yearly Rugby World Cup.

France, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, England, Italy, Ireland, Argentina, Scotland are all top contenders. read more

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JARRY PORT EXTENSION OUT OF THE BLOCKS

The Guadeloupe large port project, which intends making Jarry a transhipment hub for containerized goods in the Caribbean, is now under way. read more

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ROTTERDAM SET TO DOUBLE CONTAINER THROUGHPUT

Rotterdam, the largest port in Europe and third largest in the world, is main gateway for European trade with 430 million tonnes of goods of all types transiting its quays each year. With the coming on-line of the new Maasvlakte 2 terminal next year, its present container throughput of 11.15 million TEU's is set to rapidly double.

Rotterdam occupies a key geographic position for container shipping lines. The port has direct access to the open sea, a draught capability that rivals that of any Mediterranean port and rail and inland waterway links to almost all the European continent.

"The Meuse links the Netherlands to Belgium and the Rhine links it to Germany via daily barge services," explains Johan Molenaar of Broekman Motorships Group/ Marfret Netherlands, the independent ship's agent that manages Marfret's North Atlantic-South Pacific and South America lines. read more

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BRAZILIAN MELONS
LATIN AMERICA ON OUR PLATES

With its yellow or green skin and soft and sweet flesh, the Brazilian melon has taken European tables by storm. With the help of the Marfret Caribbean teams, we followed the journey of this fruit from the Northern Brazilian farms to Europe.

Picked by hand in the region around Mossoro in the state of Rio Grande do Norte from August to February, the melons are mainly grown by farmers from the Intermelon cooperative, which numbers 2,000 member producers. Marfret, already a specialist in the transport of grapes and mangoes, has been carrying Brazilian melons for the past two years, providing an extension to the melon season in Europe.

It's 35°C, but the ripening process will soon be interrupted as the fruit is stored at a constant 9°C for almost a month. It is only once they have crossed the Atlantic that they will continue ripening in European ripening rooms. read more

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FONTERRA CONTRACT RENEWED

In 2009, Marfret signed a contract with the New Zealand cooperative Fonterra for the transport of its dairy products. The trust placed in the French carrier was recently confirmed by the company's renewal of the contract.

Known for its rugby players and the quality of its farm products including lamb, beef and kiwifruit, New Zealand also has a reputation for its cow's milk, the production of which represents no less than 3% of the world's total.

New Zealand is split in to two main islands of which the North Island has all the climatic ingredients to make it a rich dairy production area, with constant temperatures and humidity that allow year-round pasture grazing with absolutely no requirement for winter barn housing.

Dairy products today represent 25% of exports and 10% of GDP for this small country of 4.4 million inhabitants. read more

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MARFRET Compagnie Maritime 13, Quai de la Joliette 13002 Marseille