Rates Set News

Spiraling ocean freight rates from the Far East to the United States, caused by the Red Sea crisis, may have peaked, with some relief on the horizon emerging for the shippers, according to the latest analysis from Xeneta, and ocean and air freight rate benchmarking and market analytics platform.The latest data released by Xeneta indicates a peak may have been reached after spot rates from the Far East into the US declined slightly since the last round of General Rate Increases (GRIs) were implemented at the start of February.Into the US East Coast…

This week Esgian’s Week 50 Rig Analytics Market Roundup notes developments in the semisub sector including that Shell has decided to exercise its option on Stena Don in the North Sea but not on Deepsea Bollsta in Namibia. Meanwhile, a new contract for the Transocean Barents will see it operate in the Black Sea, and jackup Shelf Drilling Perseverance will move to Vietnam.ContractsShelf Drilling has secured a contract award for the 400ft Shelf Drilling Perseverance jackup rig with PetroVietnam Domestic Exploration Production Operating Company Limited (PVEP POC).

Shares in crude oil tanker firm Frontline jump 10.5 pct to 34.48 crowns. DNB Markets predicts VLCC spot rates set to increase from $22,000 a day in 2018 to $41,000 a day by 2020. On asset values, DNB sees an 11 percent upside to VLCC resale prices by 2019 and 27 percent upside by 2020. DHT, Euronav, Frontline, Gener8 Maritime and Teekay are all upgrade to buy from hold. Share price target in DHT lifted to $5.2 from $4.0, Euronav to $10.7 from $9.0, Frontline NOK 42 from NOK 33 and Gener8 Maritime to $7.4 from $4.9 and Teekay to $1.8 from $1.5. DNB Markets says tanker stocks with moderate leverage have been unchanged year over year which shows that the downside has been taken out.

Capesize rates hit new multi-month highs this week; BHP and FMG likely to renew chartering activity next week. Freight rates for large capesize dry cargo vessels on key Asian routes, which hit multi-month highs on Tuesday, could climb further on increased chartered activity by miners and operators, brokers said. "Only Rio Tinto has been active this week - it picked off the injured animals - fixing ships for less than the last fixture, dampening the market by 50 cents a tonne," a Singapore capesize dry cargo broker said on Friday. "There's been no competition - no BHP Billiton, no Fortescue Metals Group and no operators," the broker added.

Rates from Australia to fall, Brazil rates to nudge higher. Freight rates for large capesize dry cargo ships on key Asian routes could diverge next week with rates from Australia to China trending lower on weaker sentiment while prices from Brazil to China could rise on tight vessel supply, ship brokers said. That comes as freight rates slipped on Wednesday from multi-month highs hit on Monday. "Sentiment in the Pacific is not good. There is still room for rates from Australia to drop further," a Shanghai capesize broker said on Thursday. Fortescue Metals Group chartered a capesize ship at a rate of $4.70 per tonne on Thursday to haul around 160,000 tonnes of iron ore from Australia to China, brokers said.

The Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) met for its 67th session from October 13-17, 2014, at IMO Headquarters in London. The MEPC approved the Third IMO GHG Study 2014 providing updated estimates for greenhouse gas emissions from ships. The Third IMO GHG Study 2014 estimates that international shipping emitted 796 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) in 2012, against 885 million metric tons in 2007. This represented 2.2% of the global emissions of CO2 in 2012, against 2.8% in 2007.

U.S. coal-burning power utilities are being forced to turn to barges and more expensive trucks to move coal, desperate to shore up stockpiles left dangerously low by the widespread bottlenecks on rail networks. The shift in how coal is being delivered to some power plants from mining regions such as Illinois Basin and comes amid persistent railroad delays that began during last year's severe North American winter. The delays have been perpetuated also by a surge in rail deliveries of crude oil and grain…

Average crude oil prices for July were little changed from June. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) spot average for July was $30.75 per barrel compared to $30.66 in June. EIA’s Outlook is for prices to remain firm through the rest of 2003, or at least until autumn, when OECD oil inventories may rebuild above observed 5-year lows. Once inventories have been rebuilt, WTI oil prices may slide gradually to $26 per barrel during 2004, as Iraqi oil exports return to near pre-war levels. U.S.

NCL Corporation will be the first cruise line to bring passengers on North American cruises the ability to use their cell phones even when communications towers are oceans away. The company is providing the innovative new offering through Wireless Maritime Services, a joint venture of AT&T Wireless and Maritime Telecommunications Network (MTN). Leading the way in shipboard technology, NCL pioneered the industry's first Internet access on the high seas with its Internet cafe in 1999. In 2002, NCL became the first cruise line to provide remote wireless Internet (also known as Wi-Fi) to its guests. Both services are now standard throughout NCL's entire fleet. "Cutting-edge onboard technology is important to our guests," said Colin Veitch, NCL's president and CEO.

Panamax fixtures for end-March loading dates supported forecasts that Atlantic rates are set to move higher, shipbrokers said. But although the Capesize move to higher ground removed resistance against a prolonged Panamax uptrend, spreading foot- and-mouth disease is threatening to dampen dry bulk spring bullishness, they added. They said that reports that the disease in Britain and France may affect European grain exports was disturbing. However on Thursday Tunisia and Morocco, two major importers, contradicted earlier statements and said they were not banning grain imports from Europe due to concern over foot-and-mouth infection. Panamax fixtures suggest a confident market, shipbrokers said.

A fall in dry bulk freight rates is looming nearer as the impact of strong Latin American grain business fades, brokers said this week. "As the boost from the Latin American grain season recedes, the sector's overwhelming fleet supply problems will come to the fore once again," Oslo broker Lorentzen & Stemoco (L&S said in a market report. Panamax ships have been the main beneficiaries of the strength of grain trade. In its most recent monthly report London broker SSY noted that Panamax trades had experienced their strongest quarter since 1995 at around $11,650 per day. "The 5.25 million tons of wheat and coarse grains shipped from Argentina in January and February 2001 was up 49 percent on the same period in 2000 and the strongest start to any year on record," it added.

Surging Suezmax tanker rates are set to soar if Iraqi exports come back on stream next week, shipping brokers said on Wednesday. Rates for the one million barrel tankers have lifted to around 100 Worldscale points on fixtures from West Africa and the North Sea to the U.S., and on cross Mediterranean and North Sea routes, brokers said. "Suezmax rates are going to sky rocket if Iraqi exports come back next week," one broker said. U.S. and British envoys to the U.N. said that the Security Council would vote on a straight-forward six month renewal of the humanitarian Iraq "oil-for-food" program last Friday. Iraq has previously said it would accept a renewal of the scheme on previous terms after rejecting two week and one week extensions.

Rates for clean tankers in the Pacific Basin are set to tumble, undermined by dwindling Atlantic Basin demand displacing a vast fleet of cut-price medium-range ships, according to Oslo broker Lorentzen & Stemoco (L&S). "The Atlantic weakness is certainly going to spread to the Asian markets, unless the U.S. related trade improves soon," L&S said in a market report this week. The build of U.S. gasoline and middle distillate stocks has somewhat narrowed arbitrages to the U.S. both across the Atlantic from Europe and across the Pacific from Asia, and this has eroded clean tanker rates in all regions. But L&S said Asian tankers markets had so far survived comparatively unscathed.

Surging Suezmax tanker rates are set to soar if Iraqi exports come back on stream next week, shipping brokers contend. Rates for the one million barrel tankers have lifted to around 100 Worldscale points on fixtures from West Africa and the North Sea to the U.S., and on cross Mediterranean and North Sea routes, brokers said.