Main Sea Fright Index at Baltic Exchange rises above 1000 points

UNITED KINGDOM March 08 2017 1:11 PM

LONDON (Scrap Register): The main sea freight index at Baltic Exchange for ships carrying dry bulk commodities rose above 1000 points on Tuesday led by sharp increase cape, 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, gained by another 54 points to 1033 points on Tuesday.

Demand from China for seaborne raw materials could experience a short-term setback as China moves to reduce pollution for China’s National People Congress meeting. 

Close attention will be paid to the outcome of that meeting to see if China boosts environmental protectionism. Tougher environmental regulations could reduce industrial output and that will in turn decrease raw material demand.