The Baltic Exchange’s main dry bulk sea freight index slipped on Thursday after rising for five straight sessions as a dip in capesize rates overshadowed gains in the smaller vessel segments.
The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax, supramax and handysize vessels, lost 18 points at 4,215.
The capesize index extended fall to a second straight session by 133 points, or 2.1%, to 6,304.
But the index was still close to a 12-year peak scaled on Sept. 14, with analysts attributing the recent gains to weather-related disruptions and recent port congestion, especially in China.
Average daily earnings for capesizes, which transport 150,000-tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, decreased $1,100 to $52,281.
Chinese stainless steel futures scaled their daily trading limit on Thursday to hit an all-time high, as market watchers were concerned by ongoing supply constraints of the metal while downstream demand remains resilient.
The panamax index rose for a sixth straight session, adding 52 points, or 1.4%, to 3,852, its highest since Aug. 27.
Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which ferry 60,000-70,000 tonne coal or grain cargoes, increased $464 to $34,665.
Among smaller vessels, the supramax index added 36 points to 3,283.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Rahul Paswan in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)