Asian Panamax News

Asian Panamax rates for dry bulk cargo are likely to inch up later this week on brisk demand for grain shipment after easing slightly in thin trade last week on the New Year holidays, Reuters reported. "The freight market is expected to gain momentum with the regional business returning to normal after the New Year holiday, and on expectation of active grain chartering before the Chinese New Year holiday starts," said a shipping broker in Seoul. The Lunar New Year falls on January 24. Offices in the Chinese community are likely to remain shut until as late as January 28 and the South Korean market will be closed from January 23 to 25. Panamax rates for the U.S.

Asian Panamax freight rates for dry bulk cargo edged up slightly this week in slow trade due to New Year holidays, Reuters reported. But the outlook for the Panamax sector remained healthy as activity would pick up momentum after the holiday period and the arrival of new ships was unlikely to affect Panamax rates before April, brokers said. The freight rates for the heavy grain Panamax benchmark route, U.S. Gulf to Japan, were quoted higher at $22.493 a ton compared with $22.208 two weeks earlier, brokers said. Panamax rates for the U.S. Pacific route were indicated at $16.543 per ton, up from $16.325 two weeks ago. Brokers said reported fixtures had been slightly quieter as Christmas and New Year holidays kept chartering businesses slow.

Asian Panamax freight rates for dry bulk cargo in the Pacific market edged higher this week on the back of pre-Lunar New Year holiday grain purchases and persistent coal shipments, shipping agents said. But brokers said they expected freight rates to show signs of weakness next week as several Asian countries would be on holiday. "Chartering activity will slow down next week as many countries in the Asian region close for the Chinese New Year," said one domestic broker. The Chinese New Year falls on January 24 this year. Offices in the Chinese community are likely to remain closed for the whole week ending on January 28. Spot freight rates for Panamax-class cargoes for the U.S. Pacific route were quoted at $17.213 per ton, up from $16.881 one week earlier. Panamax rates for the U.S.

Asian Panamax rates for dry bulk cargo are likely to ease further this week on soft demand for mineral and grain shipment, with many spot vessels available for hire in the market. "There have been few fresh spot inquiries by charterers," said a shipping broker. Panamax rates for freights from the U.S. Gulf to Japan were indicated at $21.50-$22.00 a ton for March shipment, against $23.00 from a week ago, he said. The broker also put indication rates for April shipment around $22.50-$23.00 on hopes of a rise in vessel demand, as the South American grain export season starts in the same month. But no fixtures have been reported. In the market, one Japanese trading house was said to have fixed a Panamax vessel last week at $21.25 a ton to carry about 54,000 tons of heavy grain from the U.S.

Asian Panamax freight rates for dry bulk cargo market edged lower this week on slowing demand and brokers said on Friday a recovery was likely to come only in mid-March with the start of the South American export season. For the benchmark U.S. Gulf to Japan route, freight rates were quoted lower at US$21.42 per ton compared to $22.19 one week ago, while spot freight rates for the U.S. Pacific route were quoted at US$16.83 per ton, down from $17.28. Brokers said the freight market appeared to be depressed by an oversupply of ships as well as slow chartering activities since the Chinese New Year holidays in late January. Some brokers had expected the freight market to bounce back this month after the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in parts of Asia…

Asian Panamax freight rates for dry bulk cargo bounced back this week and shipping agents said a recovery would become more evident with the start of South American export seasons in March. "Chartering activity is much more active than last week and we saw a substantial number of fixtures this week," said an executive at a shipping firm which operates Panamax-class business. For the benchmark U.S. Gulf to Japan route, freight rates were quoted higher on Friday at $21.775 per ton against $21.164 one week earlier, while freight rates in the Pacific were at $16.986 compared to $16.614. Brokers attributed the pullback in freight rates partly to ship owners raising prices on expectations of brisk cargo demand later in March when South American farmers began to export their crops.

Asian Panamax cargo rates for grains and minerals are likely to ease this week after a recent surge sent charterers to the sidelines, but demand in the Pacific market remains robust, traders said last week. "Charterers are reluctant to make deals due to recent higher rates, while ship owners are apparently not agreeing to discounts given the current firm market sentiment," said a shipping broker. Charterers were holding back on striking fixture deals in the hope of a decline in freight rates as well as bunker prices, he said. There have been no fixture deals between charterers and ship owners since the middle of last week, he said. But he said demand for Panamax cargoes…