#Ports&Shipping –The latest IMDO Weekly Market Review includes the following stories as detailed below.

Irish News: Burke Shipping acquires Greenore Port – As reported also on Afloat.ie, Burke Shipping Group has acquired Greenore Port in Co Louth. The price paid for the port is not known but it is thought to be in the region of €5m. The company plans to invest a substantial sum in improving Greenore. It will be the first significant port to be entirely privately owned in the Republic.

EU Regulation: EU agrees law to make ships measure CO2 emissions - The shipping sector will for the first time have to monitor its carbon emissions under a law agreed by the European Union on Wednesday, intended as a step towards tackling a growing source of pollutants linked to climate change. International shipping accounts for around 3% of the world's emissions of carbon dioxide, a share which could increase to 18% by 2050 if regulation is not in place, according to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

Tanker Market: Big tankers and bulkers gather speed -Very large crude carriers and capesize dry bulkers are speeding up due to cheaper bunker fuel as a result of the price of crude oil tumbling to around $67 per barrel, the lowest it has been since 2009. VLCCs and capesize dry bulkers have been sailing faster since September, when oil and bunker prices started to fall due to high production levels.

Ever larger containerships forecasted - Containership sizes are now nudging 20,000 TEU but that will not be the ceiling, as experts predict further upwards potential before capacities start to level off. Tom Boardley, marine director at Lloyd's Register, says it is not a matter of if, but when. "Obviously containerships have been getting bigger, as have ships across the whole fleet," he points out.

Emmissions: Shipping emissions at ports to quadruple by 2050, report says - Most shipping emissions at ports are set to increase fourfold through 2050, requiring strong abatement measures on shipping in targeted regions in coming decades, according to a new report by the International Transport Forum. Carbon dioxide and mono-nitrogen oxide emissions from ships in ports are forecast to rise up to 70 million metric tons and 1.3 million metric tons respectively by 2050, driven by growing demand for certain commodities and goods, the "Shipping Emissions in Ports" report said.

For more on each of the above and other stories click the IMDO Weekly Markets Review (Week 49). In addition to dedicated coverage on Afloat.ie's Ports & Shipping News section.