Ocean Freight Comments
Transportation and Export Report: Jay O’Neil, O’Neil Commodity Consulting:
Given the U.S. holiday, this will be an abbreviated report.
World ocean freight markets seemed to find a temporary bottom and bounce off of it this week. Capesize and Panamax markets were slightly higher. Handysize and Handymax markets remain hot and continue to rise with the heat.
Much of the support appears to be coming from improved U.S. Grain exports. This is particularly true for the Handysize and Handymax markets. In viewing this week’s freight fixtures and the Panamax forward curve chart, you will notice that the market is still inverted and that the optimism in the spot and 30-day market is not carrying over into the forward positions for January-February.
Below is a recent history of freight values for Capesize vessels of iron ore from Western Australia to China:
The charts below represent January-December 2011 and January-December 2012 annual totals versus January-September 2013 year-to-date container shipments for Vietnam.
