Bulk shipping freight rates are expected to remain depressed in the coming days as shipping activity will remain muted at the most of the Australian ports for the next four to five weeks.
Currently, repairing of railway lines, connecting to ports, is going on. The recent Debbie cyclone damaged rail lines, causing disruption at ports.
As a consequence of supply disruption, aftermath of the cyclone, coal and iron ore shipments from Australia are being temporarily halted until the supply infrastructure returns to normalcy.
Freight rates are thus expected to come down in the coming days.
Current freight rates (coal cargoes)
| Route | Supramax | Panamax | Capesize |
| Australia to India | 17.5 | 13 | 11 |
| South Africa to India | 14 | 12 | 10 |
| Indonesia to India | 10 | 8.5 | 6 |
Freights in USD/MT
Source: CoalMint Research
Current freight rates (iron ore cargoes)
| Route | Supramax |
| India to China | 12 |
Freights in USD/MT
Source: CoalMint Research
The Baltic Dry Index has fallen as a result of the depressed outlook caused by the state of affairs after the cyclone. The index has come down to 1,223 points (as on 7Apr’17) from 1,297 points( as on 31Mar’17). The index is a general indicator of global freight rate movements in respect to all classes of vessels, transporting all kinds of commodities, including coal and iron ore.
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