The Baltic exchange’s main sea freight index fell on Thursday largely due to a fall in rates for the capesize vessel segment.
The Baltic dry index, which tracks rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels ferrying dry bulk commodities, fell 66 points, or roughly 2.4%, to 2,688, falling for a third session.
The capesize index shed 204 points, or 5.7%, to 3,368, the lowest since April 15.
Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes of coal and steel-making ingredient iron ore, fell by $1,686 to $27,934.
“Main players waiting for market to find a floor and again improve, as major commodities much in demand and overall fleet efficiency moderate,” ship broker Fearnleys said in a weekly note, referring to the capesize segment.
Asia’s iron ore benchmark recovered on Thursday after hitting an over six-week low buoyed by easing concerns about a crackdown on speculative trading, while soft profits by industrial sector kept worries over policy tightening by top steel producer China at bay.
The panamax index slipped by 27 points, or 0.9%, to 2,735, falling for the fifth session in a row.
Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually carry coal or grain cargoes of about 60,000 tonnes to 70,000 tonnes, fell by $285 to $24,618.
The supramax index rose by 28 points to 2,520.
Source: Hellenic Shipping
