GULFPORT, Mississippi--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 30, 2026--
SSA Marine and the Mississippi State Port Authority at Gulfport (Port of Gulfport) today announced the commissioning of a new Liebherr LHM 550 hybrid mobile harbor crane at the Port, along with $1.6 million in state grant funding that will enable the electrification of the crane.
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The crane has a lift capacity of 124 metric tons and will be SSA Marine’s second LHM 550 in operation at the Port of Gulfport. The crane runs on a hybrid drive system, and the Port and SSA Marine are working together to add the electrical infrastructure that will allow it to operate on electric power.
“Adding a second LHM 550 at Gulfport expands our bulk handling capacity and allows us to continue delivering reliable, high-quality service to our customers,” said Greg Schruff, general manager of SSA Marine’s Port of Gulfport operations. “That progress comes from working closely with the Port, and it reflects our long-term commitment to the Mississippi Gulf Coast and SSA Marine’s broader sustainability goals.”
The $1.6 million grant was awarded to the Port through the Mississippi Department of Transportation’s Strategic Multi-Modal Investments Fund, which, along with a partial match from SSA Marine, will fund the electrical connection for the new mobile harbor crane.
“This project demonstrates what can be achieved through strong public-private partnerships,” said Jon Nass, CEO and Executive Director of the Port of Gulfport. “We appreciate SSA Marine’s continued investment in the Port of Gulfport and are grateful to the Mississippi Department of Transportation for its support in funding the electrical infrastructure for this crane. This crane allows us to better support existing customers while providing flexibility to better attract future business. Together, these investments strengthen our port, improve efficiency, and position Gulfport for continued growth.”
The primary use of the crane will be bulk cargo handling for The Chemours Company, moving ilmenite sand, a raw material used to produce white titanium dioxide pigment. Chemours has operated a nearby manufacturing facility in DeLisle, Mississippi, for more than four decades. The added capacity from the crane supports the reliable handling of Chemours’ cargo.
“We are pleased that SSA Marine continues to invest in our partnership,” said Duane Wilson, Site Engineering Manager at Chemours DeLisle facility. “The new crane will create improved efficiency in our manufacturing process and strengthen our ability to provide trusted supply reliability to our customers.”
The hybrid crane and accompanying grant funding are part of SSA Marine and the Port’s continued investment to expand cargo handling capability and modernize terminal equipment. To mark the crane’s arrival, representatives from SSA Marine, the Port of Gulfport, Chemours, and the International Longshoremen’s Association gathered at the terminal to celebrate the milestone.
About SSA Marine
SSA Marine is one of the world’s largest independent marine terminal operators, with operations across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America, South America, and in Vietnam. Since its founding in 1949, SSA Marine has continued to grow, while always remaining focused on its customers’ interests.
About the Port of Gulfport
The Port of Gulfport is a key gateway for north-south container trade and breakbulk cargo, with on-dock Class I rail service via the CN and CPKC. As a designated Strategic Seaport, the Port also has a direct rail connection to Camp Shelby and an active relationship with the Naval Construction Battalion (Seabees) stationed locally. Gulfport is a key port for refrigerated cargo and maintains 1,400 refrigerated container plugs to support perishable imports and exports. Gulfport is also a hub for Mississippi’s growing Blue Economy, housing research, innovation and manufacturing facilities that advance uncrewed maritime systems and other blue technologies.
To mark the crane’s arrival, representatives from SSA Marine, the Port of Gulfport, Chemours, and the International Longshoremen’s Association gathered at the terminal to celebrate the milestone.
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are rebounding Thursday after Microsoft leaped on hopes that its big spending on AI is translating into profits, while computer-chip companies clawed back some of their sharp recent losses.
The S&P 500 rallied 1.3% and recovered two-thirds of its drop from the prior day, which was its worst in seven weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 450 points, or 0.9% as of 12:50 p.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite, which is full of artificial-intelligence stocks, jumped 2.3% a day after it fell 9.8% below its record set last month.
Microsoft led the way and leaped 16.3% after reporting a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Growth was strong for its Azure cloud business, and CEO Satya Nadella said it reflects how customers are using Microsoft to move into AI.
Perhaps just as importantly for Wall Street, Microsoft did not announce a big increase in how much it plans to spend on AI investments, something that several other Big Tech rivals have done. Worries are high that such spending is eating into companies’ cash flows and may not ultimately be worth it if AI does not produce as much productivity and profits as promised.
Meta Platforms helped demonstrate such fears after falling 9.5%. The parent company of Facebook and Instagram reported a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected, even though it made slightly more in revenue than expected. It also raised the lower end of its forecasted range for spending on investments this year.
Companies involved in the making of the computer memory and processors that such “hyperscalers” are buying rose Thursday, recovering some of the big losses they’ve taken on worries that their stock prices shot too high in the euphoria around AI.
Micron Technology jumped 16%, for example, to trim its loss for the week to 6.9%. It was one of the strongest forces lifting the S&P 500 after Microsoft.
Lam Research, a supplier to the semiconductor industry, soared 17.6% after reporting stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Chip giant Advanced Micro Devices rallied 12.9%.
In the bond market, longer-term Treasury yields held a bit steadier following their sharp accelerations Wednesday. They had jumped after the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh, gave few clues about what the central bank will do with interest rates to combat the painfully high inflation that continues to hurt the country.
Higher rates could keep a lid on inflation, but they can also slow the economy and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.66% from 4.67% late Wednesday. The 30-year Treasury yield held steady at 5.20%, a day after it shot up from 5.09%. They move with investors’ expectations for inflation and economic growth in upcoming years.
Warsh reaffirmed on Wednesday the Fed wants to get inflation back down to 2%, even though the central bank decided not to raise interest rates despite its remaining higher than that. He also implied the bond market may already be doing some of the Fed’s work to restrain inflation, and he pointed to how yields have climbed since the central bank’s last meeting six weeks earlier.
That leaves investors questioning whether the Fed is prepared to act if inflation worsens, or whether it is relying on financial markets to achieve the same outcome, according to Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management.
“If investors conclude that the latter is true, the credibility of the Fed’s inflation-fighting commitment could come under increasing scrutiny. Arguably, it already is.”
President Donald Trump, who nominated Warsh to lead the Fed, has argued for lower interest rates even though they could cause inflation to accelerate.
Reports released Thursday suggested the U.S. economy’s growth slowed by more during the spring than economists expected. A measure of Inflation, meanwhile, remained worse last month than the Federal Reserve’s target, but it slowed from May.
In the oil market, prices eased back.
Brent crude, the international standard, fell 1.2% to $87.01 per barrel. It had swung as low as $72 early this month and as high as $102 last week on uncertainty about whether the United States and Iran could reach a deal to allow oil tankers to move freely again from the Middle East to customers worldwide.
In stock markets worldwide, indexes rose in Europe following a mixed finish in Asia. South Korea's Kospi fell 1.2%, and France's CAC 40 rose 0.9% for two of the world's bigger moves.
Seoul's market has been at the center of the huge recent moves for AI stocks because it's dominated by two tech titans, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. After more than doubling through this year's first six months, the Kospi has plunged 34% so far in July.
Its drop on Thursday came as Samsung Electronics dipped 0.7%. The tech giant reported a record profit for the spring and said demand for its chips continues to outpace supply, but its earnings nevertheless fell shy of analysts' high expectations.
AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed to this report.
FILE - People pass the New York Stock Exchange on May 28, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
FILE - The New York Stock Exchange is seen in New York, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)
A screen shows the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics Co. stock price at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, July 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Currency traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, July 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
A currency trader passes by a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, July 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, July 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
A currency trader talks on the phone at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, July 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
