Baltic Dry Index Drops Below 1,000

Aug 12 (Reuters) – The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index, which tracks rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, fell on Monday as capesize and panamax rates dropped.

* The overall index, which gauges the cost of shipping commodities such as iron ore, cement, grain, coal and fertilisers, fell 5 points, or 0.5 percent, to 996 points, its lowest since June 19.

* The capesize index dropped 8 points, or 0.44 percent, to 1,805 points.

* Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000 tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, dropped $70 to $10,550.

* The Baltic’s panamax index fell 8 points, or 0.84 percent, to 940 points.

* Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually carry coal or grain cargoes between 60,000 and 70,000 tonnes, were down $60 to $7,481. (Reporting by Arpan Varghese in Bangalore; Editing by David Goodman)

(c) 2013 Thomson Reuters

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