Ocean Freight Comments
Transportation and Export Report: Jay O’Neil, O’Neil Commodity Consulting: It was another unusual week in dry-bulk markets as the Capesize, Panamax and Supramax markets all moved in different directions. The Capesize market sector hardly moved and did not play its normal role as a market leader. Panamax and Supramax markets, however, found good support from paper traders and physical players in both the Atlantic and Pacific regions as improved demand for grains and minerals surfaced. We have not seen a big uptick in cargo demand from China, but it feels like freight markets were just tired of trending down every week. September FFA Panamax markets moved up from $10,750/day to $14,100/day, Q4 traded at $13,400/day, and CY 2024 at $11,750/day. FFA paper sellers are, however, coming back into these markets on the close. The water situation at the Panama Canal is not improving.
