Ocean Freight Comments
Transportation and Export Report: Jay O’Neil, O’Neil Commodity Consulting: Nothing good lasts forever, and that is certainly the case with ocean freight rates. From an owner’s perspective, it was a good little run up on prices over the last five weeks, but it was not destined to last long. The basic forces of too much supply verses demand still apply to this market, and the market rally has topped out. Weaker Capesize rates, along with not enough growth in grain exports, have weakened the support for Panamax freight. The next hope for the Panamax market will likely be the Fall U.S. corn and soybean harvest.
No significant new news in the PNW Grain elevator labor situation. The wheat harvest is progressing and we need to monitor the port situation closely
Below is a recent history of freight values for Capesize vessels of iron ore from Western Australia to China:
The charts below represent Jan.-Dec. 2011 and 2012, annual totals versus Jan.- April. (2013) container shipments for Hong Kong.
