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Tuesday, March 19, 2024
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Dry Bulk News

01 Mar 2024

Only Grain Ships from Black Sea and for Iran Still Crossing Red Sea

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Grain ships originating from the Black Sea or bound for Iran are about the only ones still sailing through the Red Sea as Houthi militants continue to attack vessels in the area, analysts said on Friday.The attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthis have disrupted global shipping since November and forced firms to re-route to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa."Just about all (dry bulk grain) vessels going from the Americas and western Europe are avoiding the Red Sea…

01 Mar 2024

Ukraine Expands Ship War Insurance with Marsh & Lloyd's to Iron Ore, Steel

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Insurance broker Marsh and Lloyd's of London underwriters have expanded a marine war insurance program backed by Ukraine from grain shipments to all non-military cargo, such as iron ore and steel, Marsh said on Friday.Marsh, Lloyd's and Ukrainian state banks launched an initial program in November to cut the cost of claims for damage to ships and crew transporting grain through the Black Sea corridor, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine two years ago."Expanding insurance to cover ships carrying all non-military cargo is extremely important for Ukraine…

01 Mar 2024

New US Sanctions More Likely to Curb Indian Imports of Russian Coal

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New U.S. sanctions on Moscow are more likely than previous ones to cut Indian imports of thermal coal from Russia because they specifically cite top exporters SUEK and Mechel, three major traders of Russian coal said.Russia, historically a minor exporter of the fuel to India, began boosting shipments to the south Asian country after Western sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.The latest U.S. sanctions also include Russia's payment system, financial institutions and energy production."With the new sanctions…

13 Feb 2024

Dry Bulk Vessel Rates on the Rise

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The Baltic Exchange's dry bulk sea freight index rose for a third straight session on Tuesday to hit a one-month peak, as rates climbed across larger vessel segments.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, was up 13 points, or 0.8%, at 1,585 points, its highest since Jan. 10.The capesize index also scaled a one-month high. It added 23 points, or 0.9%, at 2,476 points.Average daily earnings for capesize vessels, which typically transport 150…

12 Feb 2024

Foremost Group CEO Angela Chao Killed in Car Accident

Angela Chao (Photo: Foremost Group)

Angela Chao, chair and CEO of the Foremost Group, has died in a car accident, the New York-headquartered dry bulk shipping company announced on Monday.Angela Chao was an experienced and well-respected shipping executive, having worked her way up through several leadership positions at the company founder by her father, Dr. James S.C. Chao, with her mother, the late Ruth Mulan Chu Chao, in 1964.Before joining Foremost Group in 1996, Angela Chao worked in the mergers and acquisitions department of Smith Barney…

08 Feb 2024

Great Lakes Iron Ore Trade Up 12.4% in January

(Photo: LCA)

Iron ore shipments transported by U.S.-flag vessels on the Great Lakes totaled 2.8 million tons in January, an increase of 12.4% compared to 2023, according to latest data published by trade group the Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA)Loadings were also above the month’s 5-year average by 24.4%, LCA said.(Source: Lake Carriers’ Association)

31 Jan 2024

US-flag Great Lakes Shipping Up 6.5% in 2023

(Photo: Lake Carriers’ Association)

Cargo volumes moved by U.S.-flag Great Lakes freighters in 2023 increased 6.5% compared to 2022, according to latest figures from trade group the Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA).The 81.4 million tons of cargo transported by the U.S. laker fleet 2023 was 1.2% above the fleet’s five-year average, LCA said.Iron ore cargos totaled 42.4 million tons, an increase of 13.4% compared to a year earlier, while limestone shipments increased by 3.9% to 24.6 million tons. Sand shipments increased by 12.4%.Coal cargos were down 9.7% to 8.4 million tons.

24 Jan 2024

Ukraine's Black Sea Grain Export Success Tested by Red Sea Crisis

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Ukraine has managed to boost its Black Sea grain exports to a level not seen since before Russia's invasion, although the Red Sea shipping crisis poses a new challenge to its crucial agricultural trade.Kyiv's success in replacing a UN-backed Black Sea export deal with its own shipping scheme has brought relief for Ukrainian farmers and importing countries while representing a naval breakthrough for Ukraine's military as a land counteroffensive has stalled.The export turnaround…

12 Jan 2024

Baltic Dry Index Marks Worst Week Since 2008

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The Baltic Exchange's dry bulk sea freight index slid on Friday as its worst week since 2008 came to an end with rates across vessel segments languishing at multi-month lows.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax, and supramax shipping vessels, lost 94 points, or 6.1%, to 1,460, its lowest level since Nov. 2. It shed more than 30% for its biggest weekly decline since 2008.The capesize index dropped by 252 points, or 10.4%, to 2,172, extending its losing streak to the fifth session and hitting its lowest since Nov.

20 Nov 2023

Weaker Capesize Rates Push Baltic Dry Index Lower

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The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, dropped to snap a seven-session winning streak on Monday, weighed down by lower capesize rates.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, fell 3 points, or 0.2%, to 1,817.The capesize index lost 56 points, or 2%, to 2,707.Average daily earnings for capesize vessels, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes carrying commodities such as iron ore and coal…

17 Nov 2023

Ukraine Says 151 Ships Have Used Black Sea Corridor

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Some 151 ships have used Ukraine's new Black Sea shipping corridor since it was set up in August, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported on Friday, citing a senior government official.A total of 4.4 million metric tons of cargo, including 3.2 million tons of grain, has been shipped via the corridor, Yuriy Vaskov, deputy minister for renovation and infrastructure, was quoted as saying.A U.N.-backed deal that had allowed safe passage for Ukrainian grain exports via the Black Sea collapsed in July after Russia withdrew.In response…

06 Nov 2023

In Brazil's Amazon, Cargill Grains Ports Meet Local Resistance

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For centuries, riverside communities, including the "quilombola" descendants of enslaved Africans who escaped from plantations and ranches, have shared Xingu Island in Brazil's Amazon Basin.Its inhabitants live in brightly painted wooden houses overlooking rivers where small boats crisscross between islands and Abaetetuba city on the mainland to trade fish, seeds and fruits gathered from the Amazon forest in their backyard.In 2016, however, strangers docked on Xingu Island, in Para state…

01 Nov 2023

Baltic Dry Index Falls for 10th Straight Session

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The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, fell for a tenth straight session to a near seven-week low on Wednesday, as rates fell across vessel segments.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, fell 4% or by 58 points to 1,401.The capesize index declined 6% or 121 points to 1,899, its lowest in over one month.Average daily earnings for capesize vessels, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes carrying commodities such as iron ore and coal, lost $999 to $15,751."We anticipate

31 Oct 2023

Fire-hit Paranagua Port Berth to Resume Ops Nov. 4

© Lucia / Adobe Stock

Shipping agent Cargonave said on Tuesday Berth 201 on the West Corridor of Brazil's port of Paranagua would tentatively resume operations on Saturday, according to a note to clients based on information it said it received from the local port authority.The port authority did not have an immediate comment on Cargonove's new note to clients.Previously, Cargonave had said operations would resume on Thursday, a decision that the port authority "revoked," according to an updated statement from the shipping agent.Paranagua…

30 Oct 2023

St. Lawrence Seaway Reopens Following Tentative Deal to End Strike

© GrB / Adobe Stock

The union representing St. Lawrence Seaway workers in eastern Canada said it reached a tentative labor agreement on Sunday, ending a week-long strike that shut down a key North American trade route linked to the Atlantic Ocean.The Unifor union, representing some 360 workers, said it agreed to a deal with the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp (Seaway) that would cover engineering, maintenance, and other worker groups in Ontario and Quebec provinces.Other details of the agreement, which would need to be ratified by the workers, were not shared.

23 Oct 2023

Baltic Dry Index Falls on Muted Demand for Capesize Vessels

© cloudvisual / Adobe Stock

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, fell for a third straight session on Monday, pressured by weaker rates in the capesize segment.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, fell by 29 points, or 1.4%, to 2,017, its lowest in a week.The capesize index lost 83 points, or 2.3%, at 3,473.Average daily earnings for capesize vessels, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes carrying commodities such as iron ore and coal, fell by $688 to $28,805.Dalian iron ore futures fell, d

23 Oct 2023

Ukraine's Farmers Look to New Black Sea Route to Boost Food Exports

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Agricultural producers in Ukraine say a new Black Sea corridor could enable exports of up to 2.5 million metric tons of food a month, almost offsetting the impact of Russia's decision to quit a U.N.-brokered deal to allow grain shipments through the region.The export deal brokered by the United Nations and Turkey collapsed in July as Russia declined to recognize it, saying its demand that sanctions be lifted on its grain and fertilizer exports had not been met.Kyiv has since opened what it says is a temporary humanitarian corridor in a bid to break Russia's de facto blockade.

19 Oct 2023

It's Crunch Time for Brazilian Ports

© Erich Sacco / Adobe Stock

Brazil’s commodities export hubs are strained with record volumes of soy, corn and sugar to be moved at a time of the year when rains start to increase in southern ports, according to traders, analysts and shipping data.Exporters are reporting delays in coffee shipments due to a tight availability of trucks and containers, while loading waiting times for vessels have jumped, resulting in additional costs for traders and delays for the commodities to reach destinations.Brazil ports have been dealing with high volumes this year…

12 Oct 2023

Inland Waterways: US Making Progress on Infrastructure

(Photo: Michel Sauret / USACE)

The United States’ vast network of navigable inland rivers is vital to the nation’s economy, serving as an aquatic superhighway for the efficient shipment of critical commodities like agricultural goods, energy products, building materials and industrial chemicals to destinations within the U.S. and to deepwater ports for export. The Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI), which advocates for a modern, efficient and well-maintained inland waterways, often describes the network as “the…

11 Oct 2023

Vessels Run Aground in the Rivers of the Drought-hit Amazon Region

© juerginho / Adobe Stock

A barge carrying three trucks and 2,000 empty cooking gas cylinders lies stranded on the vast sand banks of a diminished Rio Negro river after running aground last month, highlighting the plight of river transport in the Amazon region hit by severe drought.Officials warned that low river levels risk disrupting grains exports from nearby farm states. On the Madeira, they said barge routes used by grain firms such as Cargill, Bunge and Amaggi, are open but loads are being reduced as a precaution.Shipping and logistics group A.P.

10 Oct 2023

Amazon Drought Chokes River Traffic, Threatens Exports

© Pulsar Imagens / Adobe Stock

A severe drought choking major rivers in the Amazon rainforest has disrupted ship traffic near the region's biggest city and pushed up costs for northern shipping routes, raising risks for corn exports in coming months.The unusual heat and dryness, linked to the mass deaths of fish and river dolphins, has already limited local communities'access to food and drinking water, leading the federal government to set up a humanitarian task force. Officials are now warning the thinning rivers could disrupt grains exports in the region."There is concern about shipping part of the corn harvest…

26 Sep 2023

Ship Insurance Facility Set Up for Ukraine Grain Exports

© glebzter / Adobe Stock

A new marine insurance facility for Ukrainian grain exports using the country's sea corridor has been set up in conjunction with Ukraine's authorities, insurance broker Miller said on Tuesday.Russia quit a U.N.-backed deal in July to enable exports from Ukraine to sail from three approved ports.Since then, Kyiv has launched what it calls a new temporary humanitarian corridor in an effort to break Russia's de facto blockade. Two ships have sailed in the recent days from the Ukrainian…

25 Sep 2023

Baltic Dry Index Rises to Over Four-month High

© Aufwind-Luftbilder / Adobe Stock

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, which tracks rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, rose to its highest since mid-May on Monday, supported by gains in the capesize vessel segment.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, rose 21 points, or 1.3% to 1,614, its highest level since May 10.The capesize index added 65 points, or 3.1% to 2,148, its highest level in over four months.Average daily earnings for capesize vessels…

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