Ocean Freight Comments
Transportation and Export Report: Jay O’Neil, O’Neil Commodity Consulting: Dry-bulk markets are on a three-week roll. They found enough support to rally another $0.25-$0.50/MT but ended the week on a flat note and look like they are running out of steam. Concerns over the U.S.-China trade war and slow growth in global economies continues to weight on everyone’s outlook. Dutch academics have a term for this: “slowbalization.” And, aside from economic conditions, it is causing dry-bulk and container shipping companies to engage in additional slow-steaming.
On the grain trade side of things, we are not yet seeing any movement of corn from Brazil to East Coast U.S. However, there is continued movement of Handymax corn vessels from Brazil to Vera Cruz, Mexico.
