And it deserved more!
Great post
Crowsnest said...
Dear VS, stumbled across this blog whilst googling 'address commission' and thought 'wow, now why didnt i think of doing that!'. I intend to be a regular visitor and poster!
regarding the question of timecharter versus voyage, there is no doubt that the timecharter is potentially 'leaving money on the table' - which is what permits the role of Operator who will timecharter ships and fix business on voyage and hope to make some buckaroos in the middle.
As has been mentioned above, the key element is the amount of risk involved. The voyage charterer may earn what appears to be a big juicy freight but gets penalised by rain and bad weather whilst the timecharterer just wakes up every morning to another day's hire in the bank!
The voyage charterer must pay very close attention to cash flow - his ship may be waiting one month to load yet he will only receive the freight after loading completed, and the demurrage sometime thereafter. Meanwhile he must pay hire every 15 days to the owner from whom he has timechartered the vessel - not to mention having to pay hire in advance and a very substantial lumpsum for the bunkers upon taking delivery.
A voyage charterer must have a keen understanding of all operational aspects of the trade he is involved in. This means having his own team of in-house experts and reliable locals on the ground. The Owner who deals only in timechartering out his ships can operate with just a broker and an accountant and has plenty of time on his hands to work out the best moment to buy or sell another ship.
There are also the financial animals (such as publicly quoted companies on Nasdaq) who buy ships against long term period timecharter contracts - they have little interest in the daily excitement of moving cargoes around the globe. They just want to see a good (safe) return on capital. A period timecharter (to a first class charterer) is a bankable asset.
and so on.......personally I prefer voyage business because it allows the broker to really exercise his profession and bring his skills to bear in a way which will enhance his principal's profit expectations. If we brokers just act as post boxes then our profession (like the physical postbox) is doomed to extinction !
keep up the good work VS
End qte
Great work!
Postbox: That's exactly what expresses the idea.
ReplyDeleteI could tell you about a small company that used to have a few good breakbulk vessels on long-term t/c and relet them, at impressive profit rates, to some said-to-be reliable players plying the oceans of yesterday's world. And I remember one very nice vessel plain abandoned by her charterers, crew sitting ducks until the head Owners could stand it no longer. Ah, the stories of shipping!
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