LONDON (Scrap Register): The main sea freight index at Baltic Exchange for ships carrying dry bulk commodities climbed further to 1282 points on Monday led by stronger cape, panamax and supramax indices. 
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 42 points to 1282 points on Monday.
Part of the pressure the BDI felt this week came as demand for coastal coal transport between Chinese ports retreated. After rising over the past few weeks, freight rates for shipping coal from northern China’s Qinhuangdao port to the other Chinese ports of Zhangjiagang, Shanghai and Guangzhou in eastern and southern China drifted in the week to Tuesday, according to the operator of the Qinhuangdao Port.