India: Dry bulk coal freights drop further as fixtures remain slow

• Freights on South Africa-India route drop steeply 
• One fixture reported for coking coal to India

Dry bulk coal freights to India from all major regions like Australia, South Africa and Indonesia remained on a downward trend this week. Out of the three, freights from South Africa witnessed the steepest decline.

Not many fixtures were reported this week as buyers continued to be taking a cautious approach, specially sponge iron players, as prices have witnessed a drop this week in the Indian domestic market.

Baltic dry bulk index edges down: The Baltic Exchange’s main dry bulk sea freight index continued its downtrend as demand weakened across vessel segments. The Panamax index dropped by 16 points d-o-d to 1,643. Meanwhile, the Supramax index rose by 32 points w-o-w to 1,300.

Route-wise updates

Australia (Hay Point)-India (Paradip), Panamax: Freights from Australia to India decreased by $0.4/dry metric tonne (dmt) w-o-w, with BigMint’s latest assessment placing the Hay Point-Paradip route at $15.9/dmt. Sources highlighted a fixture done by SAIL from an Australian port to Vizag at $16.95 for early September shipment.

South Africa (Richards Bay)-India (Paradip), Panamax: Panamax freights on the South Africa (Richards Bay) to India (Paradip) route dropped by $1.7/dmt w-o-w to $14/dmt. The decline was mainly attributed to lack of active fixtures.

Indonesia (East Kalimantan)-India (Navlakhi), Supramax: Supramax coal freights on the Indonesia (East Kalimantan) to India (Navlakhi) route fell by $0.24/dmt w-o-w to $15.9/dmt.

Outlook

The near-term outlook for the coal freight market remains soft, with demand subdued due to seasonal and logistical factors. In India, ongoing monsoon-induced disruptions have slowed coal imports and vessel bookings. Port congestion and uneven cargo discharge are also contributing to delays, keeping overall freight activity muted.