- Freight rates dip in Asian routes as the holiday season kick in.
- Ease of congestion in the Australia-China route have added to the problem.
Capesize rates are likely to go down along major asian routes as chartering activity thins during the holiday season and abundant tonnage for January weighs on rates, brokers said. Already, the freight rates of cargo ships along the Brazil-China ruote, have dropped by $4 per tonne in the last week which is equivalent to a daily falling of $6,000.
As port congestion ease out in Australia and China, hold-ups at Hay Point and Dalrymple Bay clear up.
“It’s business as usual off Hay Point but we’re still seeing queues for Dalrymple. However it’s declining steadily and we’re expecting a return to normal sometime in January,” Ian Macfarlane, chief executive of the Queensland Resources Council, told Reuters.
Capesize rates fell to $8.54 a tonne on wednesday, which is the lowest for this route, since Nov. 22 rate of $9.93. Rates along the Brazil-China route went down from $20.36 in the previous week to $17.50 a tonne, the lowest since Oct. 13.
“Owners are presently under-bidding each other in order to secure employment over the holidays,” Norwegian ship broker Fearnley said in a note.
Rates in the north Pacific and Indonesia has respectively slipped down to $10,814 per day and $6,000-$7,000 per day.
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Source: Reuters
