The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index or BDI, which
tracks rates to ship dry commodities, rose its highest in nearly nine months on
Friday helped by firm coal and iron ore bookings with overall earnings seen
staying volatile.
The overall index rose 3.14 percent or 56 points to 1,838
points in a second day of gains after turning negative on Wednesday and was at
its highest since Dec. 21. Prior to the drop, it had risen for five previous
sessions. Last month the index had hit a near seven-month high.
“While skeptics continue to argue that the recent
strength in the capesize market has been sentiment driven, this is not the
case. Vessel availability for capes in both the Atlantic and Pacific basin has
been very tight,” said Jeffrey Landsberg, managing director of dry bulk
consultancy Commodore Research.
“Demand for coal and iron ore cargoes has been very
strong this week as well. The rally has been driven by firmer coal and iron
exports from Australia to China, which had boosted the larger capesize market.
Coal imports into Japan have also picked up, while there had been active
freight derivatives (FFA) trading in recent days, which had bolstered
sentiment.
The Baltic's panamax index rose 0.9 percent. Average daily
earnings for panamaxes, which usually transport 60,000-70,000 tonne cargoes of
coal or grains, reached $13,534
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