UNITED KINGDOM March 21 2016 3:33 PM

LONDON (Scrap Register): The main sea freight index at Baltic Exchange for ships carrying dry bulk commodities has gained on Friday mainly due to the higher cape and supermax 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, up by 3 points to 395 points on Friday.

The index fell almost every day in 2016 until February 11, when it set a record low of 290. Since then, the index has made a solid recovery but now that appears to be losing steam. 

The Baltic Dry Index remains under pressure on subdued commodity demand, with concerns over the health of China’s economy contributing to the majority of the negative sentiment. 

China is the powerhouse when it comes to raw materials consumption, and as evidence has spread that the country’s economy is on shaky footing, the price of many commodities has plunged.

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 February 10 2016, when the index plummeted to 290 points.