INDIA March 01 2016 1:44 PM

LONDON (Scrap Register): The main sea freight index at Baltic Exchange for ships carrying dry bulk commodities increased further on Monday lifted by strong panamax and supramax rates.

The Baltic Dry Index, which provides an assessment of the price of moving the major raw materials – such as coal, iron ore and grain – by sea by taking in 23 shipping routes measured on a time charter basis, advanced further by 2 points to 329 points on Monday.

The Baltic Dry Index climbed further as industry players once again voiced opinion that scrapping - rather than layups or slashing newbuild orders - is the dry bulk market's only hope for meaningful recovery.

The index is based on a daily survey of agents all over the world. Baltic Dry hit a temporary peak on May 20, 2008, when the index hit 11,793. The lowest level ever reached was on Wednesday, February 10 2016, when the index plummeted to 290 points.