Sept 16 (Reuters) – The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, marked its best week in over seven months, largely driven by a 126% weekly gain in the capesize vessel segment.
* The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, recorded its third weekly gain of about 28%, highest since mid-February.
* However, the dry index snapped its seven-day long gaining streak, losing 59 points, or about 3.7%, on its worst day in over two weeks, to 1,553.
* The capesize index posted a weekly gain of about 126%, its highest in over two years. However, it snapped a five-day winning streak, losing 118 points, or about 7.2%, at 1,519.
* Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes such as coal and steel-making ingredient iron-ore used in construction, fell $981 to $12,599.
* Dalian and Singapore iron ore futures fell after data showed China’s property sector contracted further in August, with a seasonal demand boost usually seen beginning September not yet in sight. IRONORE/
* The panamax index posted a 6.7% weekly gain, its second consecutive weekly gain. However, it fell for the second consecutive session and was down 100 points, or about 4.8%, at 1,990.
* Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually carry coal or grain cargoes of about 60,000 to 70,000 tonnes, were down $900 at $17,913.
* Around 82 ships with 418 seafarers remain stuck around Ukrainian ports despite the opening of a U.N.-backed sea corridor to ship grains with efforts to get the mariners sailing still stuck, shipping industry officials said on Thursday.
* The supramax index .BSIS rose for the fourth consecutive session by 22 points to 1,551.
(Reporting by Harshit Verma in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2022.
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