The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index, which tracks rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, rose on Wednesday on higher rates for the capesize vessel segment.
The main index, which monitors rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, added 7 points, or 0.5%, to 1,303.
The capesize index was up 65 points, or 3.6%, at 1,874.
Average daily earnings for capesize vessels, which typically transport 150,000-ton cargoes such as iron ore and coal, rose $534 to $15,539.
Iron ore futures prices dipped for a fourth consecutive session while rebar prices slipped to their lowest since 2020, pressured by slowing steel production in top consumer China.
“While major bulks face headwinds, bauxite trade stands out as a notable exception in an otherwise uneven dry bulk landscape, influenced by weakened Chinese dry bulk demand due to declining local manufacturing activity and projected slower GDP growth,” Nikos Tagoulis, senior analyst at Intermodal said in a note.
The panamax index fell for a fifth straight session by 39 points, or 3%, to 1,169, its lowest in more than two months since March 12.
Average daily earnings for panamax vessels, which usually carry 60,000-70,000 tons of coal or grain, receded $346 to $10,523.
Among smaller vessels, the supramax index dipped 10 points to 964, its lowest level in three weeks.
Source: Reuters