PwC returned to 351 global CEOs.
Across 59 countries.
And 27 industries.
The results look familiar.
27% say pricing became much harder.
26% say supply chains became much harder.
19% saw energy costs jump over 10%.
Shipping faces all three at once.
The question is not whether shipping is exposed.
It is which companies can respond faster.
Here are 5️⃣ signals:
1️⃣ Pricing is getting harder
Freight markets are moving in different directions.
One trade can rise while another falls.
A global average can hide the real market.
💡 Pricing needs to become more trade-specific.
2️⃣ Energy is now strategic
Energy was CEOs’ biggest cost surprise.
For shipping, fuel changes much more than cost.
It changes speed, routing and fleet economics.
💡 Fuel strategy is becoming business strategy.
3️⃣ Small shocks matter more
Only 0.7% of boxship capacity was idle.
There is little spare capacity in the system.
One disruption can therefore travel quickly.
💡 Low slack raises the value of resilience.
4️⃣ AI should see trouble early
Only 23% used AI to spot shock effects early.
But 38% used it to find new opportunities.
Shipping has huge amounts of early-warning data.
💡 The best AI may warn before earnings move.
5️⃣ Resilience can drive growth
Strong “techno-resilience” changed CEO confidence.
Those companies were 66% more likely to report high growth confidence.
Resilience is becoming more than defence.
💡 It can become a competitive advantage.
🧭 Maritime Analytica View
Shipping has always managed volatility.
But today the risks are connected.
Fuel changes costs.
Geopolitics changes routes.
Routes change capacity.
Capacity changes rates.
Technology changes decision speed.
That makes early action more valuable.
The winner may not predict every shock.
It may simply react first.
The question: can management move before the market does?