The 2000-09 decade saw the “China boom” and an accompanying commodity bull run transform dry freight rates, redraw seaborne trade patterns, create chronic port congestion and lay the basis for a record bulker orderbook.
This decade of change brought unprecedented volatility to the Baltic Exchange Dry Index. The average daily movement in the BDI was 41 points in the “noughties” as opposed to just 7 points during the 1990s. Despite wild fluctuations, which lifted the BDI to an all-time high of 11,793 points in May 2008 before it crashed to a decade-low of 633 points in December 2008, the BDI was back close to its ten-year average of 3,322 points by late December 2009.
New extremes in charter rates were nowhere better illustrated than in the Capesize sector. Having only broken the $30,000/day mark for the first time in May 2003, the average of the 4 Cape TCs set an all-time high of $233,988/day in June 2008. An ensuing 99%-fall, however, left earnings at a decade-low of $2,316/day just six months later.
News
Dry bulk carrier newbuilding deliveries hit a new record in January
08-02-2010
Dry bulk carrier newbuilding deliveries experienced an acceleration in January, hitting a new record of 6.3 Mdwt or 77 vessels. The Capesize fleet continued to expand at a faster pace than any ... [more]
OPEC Production Up in January
08-02-2010
Production by the eleven members of OPEC excluding Iraq averaged 26.75mbpd in January, 1.9 mbpd above the organisation’s own quota, Argusreports. This represents the tenth consecutive ... [more]
Japanese & South Korean Crude Imports Fall
05-02-2010
Japan has lost its position as Asia’s largest importer of crude, as average imports for 2009 fell by 12.7% year on year to 3.65 mbpd, reports Energy Intel. The fall was compounded by average imports ... [more]
Global Oil Surplus Widens in January Despite Growth in Non-OECD Demand
04-02-2010
The global oil surplus grew to close to 1.5 mbpd in January as, month on month, demand fell by 820 kbpd to average 85.61 mbpd and supply increased by 150 kbpd to 87.1 mbpd, reports Energy Intel. ... [more]
Indian iron ore prices continue to fall
04-02-2010
The FOB price of Indian iron ore of 63.5% Fe content fell for the third straight weeks, down by $3/t week-on-week to $101/t at the end of last week, posting the lowest level so far in 2010, according ... [more]
Events
World Coaltrans Conference
26-10-2009 - 27-10-2009
SSY’s Head of Research, John Kearsey, spoke at the World Coaltrans conference in London at the end of October. His paper outlined the main factors behind the dramatic rebound in dry bulk freight rates in 2009 and the threats posed to market ... [more]
Charles Lynch to Join SSY
15-07-2009 - 00-00-0000
Simpson, Spence, and Young (SSY) is pleased to announce that Charles Lynch, President of C.M. Lynch and Associates and the members of C.M. Lynch and Associates will be joining Simpson, SSY. Charles Lynch will be assuming the role of ... [more]
World Dry Bulk Shipping Summit
30-06-2009 - 01-07-2009
Derek Langston, Director at SSY Consulatncy & Research, presented a paper at the World Dry Bulk Shipping Summit in London on 30 June 2009. The paper “Indicators In An Opaque Market” examined the key indicators for freight at a volatile time for the ... [more]
Markets
Sale & Purchase
04-02-2010
Following the activity for Tankers last week, the focus has now seemingly returned to the Dry Bulk sector, with both interest and prices continuing to be positive.It is ... [more]
Dry Cargo
Capesize
05-02-2010
A softer tone in the Capesize market at the start of this week with an initial decline seemed to find a plateau and rates started to ... [more]
Atlantic Panamax
05-02-2010
Following on from a negative previous week, sentiment remained unchanged. Little fresh enquiry for both TransAtlantic and front haul caused ... [more]
Pacific Panamax
05-02-2010
We began the week much how we left off last week with sentiment down and rates softer. Charterers were relaxed as tonnage began to build ... [more]
Atlantic Handysize
05-02-2010
The declines of last week continued for the part of this week, however by the end of the week the ratio of supply to demand looked far more ... [more]
Pacific Handysize
05-02-2010
With Chinese new year just around the corner activity in the Far East has been somewhat slow, however this has not deterred owners ... [more]
Tankers
01-02-2010
Nigeria’s main rebel group MEND has called off a 3 month truce in the Niger Delta, threatening an “all-out onslaught” against oil ... [more]
Chemicals
25-01-2010
Americas: USG/Caribs has seen increased activity, primarily on contractual nominations but also with more spot business. Several small CPP ... [more]
Gas
LNG
03-02-2010
China’s Taizhou Wuzhou Shipbuilding has delivered to Norway’s Norgas Carriers (part of the IM Skaugen group) the first of four “Multigas” ... [more]
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