Baltic Dry Index sinks to its lowest point in 19 months
The index shows no signs of finding its floor yet, dropping more than 150 points in a week
Both the panamax and supramax segments continue to struggle but the foundation stone of capesizes has also began to fall consistently
THE Baltic Dry Index hit its lowest point since June 2023 on Monday before sinking even lower 24 hours later.
The index hit 928 points on January 21, just nine points higher than the low point of June 2, 2023.
All key vessel segments have made a poor start to the week. The woes of the panamaxes and supramaxes are not new, but the mini-rally by the capesizes earlier in the month, which kept the BDI above the 1,000 point waterline, seems long gone.
The Baltic Exchange said the week began on a “sluggish and uninspiring note” for the capesizes. Just one miner was in the market in a “sparse” Pacific basin, the exchange said in its daily market report of January 20, with early reports indicating fixtures nearing $6 per tonne. The C5 (West Australia to Qingdao) route dropped to $6.21 per tonne on January 20, before increasing slightly to $6.25 per tonne on January 21.
In terms of the smaller sizes, the exchange said the North Atlantic panamax market continued to appear “weaker on the surface”, although there was a possibility the Asia market could find its floor.
Sentiment in the supramax segment remained “very poor” in both the Atlantic and Asian basins, the exchange said, with brokers citing “very limited fresh impetus” and readily available tonnage.