Baltic Dry Index Rises for Fourth Straight Session

Feb 17 (Reuters) – The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, rose for the fourth consecutive session on Wednesday, on gains across most vessel segments.

The overall index, which gauges the cost of shipping resources including iron ore, cement, grain, coal and fertiliser, rose 6 points or 1.99 percent to 307 points.

The index touched an all-time low of 290 points on Feb. 10, marking the lowest level since records began in 1985.

The sector has been particularly hurt by slower Chinese business at a time when the market is struggling with huge vessel overcapacity.

The index ticked up this week on optimism over a revival of demand for some commodities in China such as Iron Ore.

The capesize index was flat at 223 points.

Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, fell$6 to $2,799.

The panamax index was up 11 points, or 3.18 percent, at 357 points. Average daily earnings for panamaxes climbed $90 to $2,862.

Among smaller vessels, the supramax index gained 7 points to 259 points, while the handysize index was up 2 points at 186 points. (Reporting by Nithin Prasad in Bengaluru)

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016.

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