The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, fell for the third straight day as capesize ship rates continued to decline.
The overall index, which considers rates for capesize, panamax, supramax and handysize shipping vessels, dipped 4 points, or 0.47 percent, to 851 points on Friday.
Reaches lowest mark:
The capesize index lost 64 points, or 5 percent, to end at 1,213 points, hitting its lowest level since early March.
“Capesize dry bulkers remain under pressure into the close of the week with rates sliding across both the Atlantic and Pacific basins,” Clarksons Platou Securities analysts said in a note.
Average earning increases:
Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, were down $578 to $9,170.
The panamax index rose 26 points, or 2.77 percent, to 964 points.
Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually carry coal or grain cargoes of about 60,000 to 70,000 tonnes, increased $206 to $7,725.
Among smaller vessels, the supramax index rose 11 points to 701 points, while the handysize index climbed 4 points to 435 points.
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Source: Reuters (Reporting by Karen Rodrigues in Bengaluru; Editing by Sai Sachin Ravikumar)
