Freight Rates Dip For First Time This Month

The Baltic indices indicated perhaps some changing conditions in the dry cargo market, with the Baltic Capesize Index falling for the first time this month on evidence of weaker conditions in the Far east and South Africa. The panamax index, however, took up the forward running on the basis of firmer rates conceded by charterers in the north Atlantic and the Pacific, they added. The Baltic Freight Index (BFI) rose nine points to 1,406, the Baltic Panamax Index gained 15 points to 1,350, and the Baltic Handy Index was up three points to 962, but the Baltic Capesize Index slipped two points to 1,899.