This weeks market

 

Dec 13 (Reuters) - The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight
index, which tracks rates for ships carrying dry
commodities, fell on Thursday as capesize rates extended a drop
the previous day.

The overall index, which reflects daily freight market
prices for capesize, panamax, supramax and handysize dry bulk
transport vessels, fell 3.27 percent to 799 points.

The Baltic's capesize index fell 2.47 percent to
1,407 points.

Average daily earnings for capesizes, which usually
transport 150,000 tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, were
down $731 at $6,893.

Capesize rates plunged on Wednesday by about 12.4 percent,
driven by a dip in transatlantic round voyage rates. Vessels
ballasting into the Atlantic have been putting severe pressure
on round voyage rates.

Iron ore prices reached their highest since July as
steelmakers replenish stocks in the world's top consumer, China,
but weak steel prices are likely to limit gains in the raw
material.

Iron ore shipments account for about a third of seaborne
volumes on the larger capesize vessels, and brokers said that
price developments remained a key factor for dry freight.

The panamax index fell 2.57 percent, with average
daily earnings down $181 at $6,919.

The Pacific market has been weak for panamax vessels, Andy
Jamison, shipping blogger and owner of the Virtual Shipbroker,
said. 'Shipowners face uncertain questions with regard to where
they should ballast their ships,' Jamison said.

Average daily earnings for handysize ships were down $14
$6,542, while those of supramax ships were down $27 at $7,795.

(Reporting by NR Sethuraman in Bangalore; editing by Jane
Baird)