Freight market

摘要

Global CFI has shown just a $0.03/t increase in late January. Sea-river freight rates ex Russian Azov Sea ports have dropped by$1.15/t, while the rates from BlSea seaports have stepped up by $0.29/t. Moreover, Gulf of Finland CFI has risen by $0.75/t. Global ISMCommodity Index has decreased by 2 points this week given softening prices for steel products and particularly for scrap. Market playersreport exceedingly weak demand for Russian and Ukrainian steel from Turkish and North African importers. At the same time, shipmentsof steel from Turkey to Egypt may give support to the freight market, as ISM sources report growing number of corresponding purchaseand sales deals under negotiation so far. With steady exports of Black Sea grain, the shipowners expect the rates to stay at the currentcomfortable level in February. It is worth noting that the average daily earnings for small dwt sea-going vessels are now 25-50% abovethe OPEX in the Black Sea.