Cement News tagged under: Freight Markets
No real direction in the markets21 December 2010, Published under Cement NewsWith the holiday season almost among us, recent trends point to a lethargy in most markets with no real direction visible from the main indices. True, the Baltic Capesize sectors have seen a small improvement in December due to a surge in demand from the big Pacific miners, but by and large the overall Baltic Dry Index remains stuck at around the 2000-2200 range. In fact, the Panamax market has experienced a softer tendency in mid-December with rates sliding in the Pacific basin. As brokers... |
Baltic index falls, capesize cargo activity slow26 November 2010, Published under Cement NewsThe Baltic’s main index has been erratic this year, as it was in 2009, because of swings in Chinese demand for iron ore, the primary ingredient of steel. It reached a 2010 peak of over 4200 points in May. Brokers said players were waiting to see if China would raise interest rates, which could lead to a pullback in ore imports and shipping activity. China’s iron ore imports are likely to rise as much as 10 per cent to a record in 2011, a move that should keep prices near multiyear highs, a... |
Markets remain fairly stable in late October30 October 2010, Published under Cement NewsMarkets were noted to be holding fairly steady in late October with the the Baltic Dry Index closing on Friday the 29th of October 2010 at 2678 points, with some small gains in the Panamax sectors helping to keep the BDI on a positive track. There are some concerns that traditional coal deliveries from South Africa and Colombia might switch to China and India which may impact on rates, while Chinese ore imports will rise for the rest of the year due to low domestic stockpiles another upward ... |
At last, some optimism returns to the sector25 August 2010, Published under Cement NewsWill the Baltic Dry Index reach 5000 by year-end? One or two of the more optimistic brokers seem to be suggesting that this barrier could be broken, given the recent upsurge in rates, although clearly there is a long way to go with underlying sentiment on global fundamentals still posing a moderate degree of uncertainty. On a week to week basis, August activity levels pushed up the BDI appreciably although in the final week it fell back slightly to the 2700 level. The yearly average... |
Some improvements in dry bulk freights but...29 July 2010, Published under Cement NewsFreight rates for dry bulk carriers have continued to edge higher during the last week of July, with the industry’s main benchmark, the Baltic Dry Index (BDI) gaining some 2.16 per cent over the previous week. This was the 10th straight session of increases, despite the fact that most analysts appear rather pessimistic on the short-term prospects of the market. This rebound has reportedly been triggered by a firmer iron ore demand and a restocking taking place in China, as a result of a bett... |
IHS: outlook for dry bulk shipments improving28 July 2010, Published under Cement NewsWorld trade by all modes of transportation – sea, air and land – will grow 8.1 per cent in 2010 and 6.9 per cent in 2011, following a 7.2 per cent decline in 2009, according to the latest forecast from IHS Global Insight’s World Trade Service. International trade volumes will continue to increase on pace with the global economic recovery, according to the Second Quarter Trends in World Economy and Trade report from the IHS Global Insight World Trade Service. The outlook for bulk shi... |
Looking beyond the near-term weakness in dry freight26 July 2010, Published under Cement NewsThe Baltic Dry Index just experienced a severe downward spiral, undergoing the longest consecutive decline since 1995, writes BofA Merrill Lynch in a recent Global Research report. Partially reflecting the simultaneous economic slowdown in the US, Europe and China, dry freight prices recorded a 60% collapse in just 35 days. A combination of lower iron ore imports into China, slower coal activity, easing port congestion and a heavy fleet delivery schedule pushed dry freight rates lower. St... |
Some gains noted but outlook still mixed in May26 July 2010, Published under Cement NewsA slight drop in the BDI mid-May, led by the Capesize market which was unable to maintain the pace of the previous week. However Panamax-to-Handysize showed gains over the week on the back of continued tonnage tightness. In the newbuilding market, there were surprise reports of orders for both Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton. Rio Tinto was said to have placed a US$500m order at Hanjin for eight 205,000dwt vessels. Meanwhile BHP is reportedly set to give 10-year charter backing to six vessels of t... |
Dry freight could recover next year: report27 April 2010, Published under Cement NewsA recent report by Bank of America Merrill Lynch shows that dry freight could recover next year. Now the economy and commodity prices are finding support and cyclical commodities like iron ore, copper and crude oil are strengthening, the relative weakness of dry bulk shipping prices is somewhat surprising according to the bank. Growth in global industrial production is rebounding at the strongest rate since 2000 but the freight market is still lagging. This is because after decades of minim... |
Some renewed optimism for dry bulk sectors03 March 2010, Published under Cement NewsDespite a lack of movement in the Baltic Dry bulk index, it would appear that an element of confidence is returning to the sector especially with the Supramax and Handysize segments posting significant gains and correcting the heavy losses suffered in early February. The time charter averages for these segments have now returned to the relatively robust levels of around US$24,000/day for the Supras and US$16,500/day for the Handies. As brokers at Barry Rogliano note: In the wider dry bulk m... |