A record 370,000 TEUs of ship capacity was scrapped in 2009 – an amount equal to the cumulative capacity scrapped over the past decade – says Shipping Gazette quoting figures compiled by Alphaliner, the Paris-based consultancy agency. This is the largest ever recorded level of scrapping of capable container ships largely because the owners struggle to find employment for surplus vessels. According to figures, 200 container ships were sold for scrap in 2009, including the 17-year-old Hyundai Admiral (capacity 4651 TEUs). With this high level of scrapping, the average age of vessels demolished has dropped to 27 years, thus reversing...