The Baltic exchange’s main sea freight index fell to its lowest in more than a month en route to its fourth straight weekly decline, pressured by a retreat in the capesize segment.

The Baltic dry index, which tracks rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels ferrying dry bulk commodities, shed 34 points, or 1.4%, at 2,438, its lowest since April 19.

The main index fell 6% for the week.

The capesize index dropped 144 points, or nearly 5.3%, to 2,524, the lowest in nearly two months. The index fell over 18% for the week, also its fourth straight weekly dip.

Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes of coal and steel-making ingredient iron ore, dropped by $1,169 to $20,933.

Chinese steel rebar and hot rolled coils futures rose on Friday and posted weekly gains as raw material costs jumped, but prices were kept in check by demand concerns stemming from the upcoming rainy season.

The panamax index rose 37 points, or about 1.3%, to 2,933, the highest since May 14, up by nearly 6% this week.

Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually carry coal or grain cargoes of about 60,000 tonnes to 70,000 tonnes, went up by $332 to $26,400.

The supramax index rose by 8 points to 2,449.

The world’s leading container line Maersk warned in a letter on Thursday that it expects congestion and delays at Shenzen’s Yantian port in southern China to last at least 14 days, longer than its expectation of 12 days communicated earlier on Thursday.

Source: Reuters

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