GMS Week 01 – NEW YEAR, W.T. FEARS! in Weekly Demolition Reports 05/01/2026 After what only seemed like a calm period while Donald Trump was flailing in the polls amid ongoing scandals and investigations, he ramped it up and brought 2026 in with a literal BANG via his latest incursion into — and seizure of — President Nicolas Maduro and his wife from their Presidential Home in Venezuela, in a pre-dawn raid by special-forces. Trump even posted a Polaroid of the handcuffed Maduro, blindfolded, as they landed at a secure / undisclosed facility. While Trump’s true intentions remain unclear (just yet), it’s only a matter of time before we see how global / oil / shipping markets react in the coming week(s) to this globally dictatorial move that has most certainly violated a long list of international laws pertaining to sitting presidents and prisoners of war. Moreover, major news outlets are now reporting confusion over who maintains control. Although major news sources report that the U.S. is claiming to hold power over the country, Trump claims the current Venezuelan government (albeit with the President missing and all) will hold interim power while the U.S. administers the nation until such time that a new administration capable of resuming duties is in place to lead the country. Hard to reread that and not think that a prominent three-letter agency was missing some South American sun this frigid time of the year; and after all the geopolitical craziness that gripped — and impacted — us through 2025, I don’t know how many were ready to see Trump Theatre & Co. deliver a cake factory to celebrate his madness this soon in 2026. In the meantime, global economies delivered mixed signals as U.S. stocks maintained a steady decline over the tail-end of December, China’s industrial growth slowed, and EU stocks reportedly surged. The U.S. Dollar started the year off-balance against ship recycling currencies, shipowners started to rejoice as the Baltic Exchange Dry Index showed signs of a resurgence, oil continued to slip on its way to USD 60/barrel even though it climbed to USD 57.17/barrel this week, local steel plate prices made no jarring moves beyond the recent trend, and beaching tides delivered twins in both India and Pakistan. At least it was encouraging to see the Indian market display some signs of improvement over the first week of 2026, as busier and less challenging times hopefully lie ahead. In the ship recycling markets overall, increasingly decisive times lie ahead for Bangladesh as a nation given that impending elections are nearing by the week and the country is being increasingly submerged by political protests, rioting, and instances of violence. Bangladesh levels and demand have plummeted as a result and now lie at the foot of the sub-continent price rankings board, given that Pakistan and India both made improvements as December 2025 ended, and they moved up the ladder. With more upheaval now expected across the world, continued economic and geopolitical shocks may temporarily prop up shipping markets and deprive recycling locations of vintage tonnage for a while longer — it seems as though 2026 is taking on the mantle from 2025! For Week 01 of 2026, GMS Market Rankings / vessel indications are as below. Download PDF Source: GMS,Inc. https://www.gmsinc.net/gms_new/index.php/web 2026-01-05 hellenicshippingnews... window.___gcfg = {lang: 'en-US'}; (function(w, d, s) { function go(){ var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], loa