Shipping Report
TANKERS The VLCC market remains weak out of Arabian Gulf, despite a number of fixtures. Rates with destinations East are hovering at around W/S 80. – LG Caltex has fixed M/T «Tenyo» for 265,000 tons of cargo, loading May 16, discharging South Korea, at W/S 82.5, while Exxon Mobil for 270,000 tons of cargo, loading May 22, discharging Far East, has fixed M/T «Sunlight Jewel» at W/S 80. – Weaker rates out of West Africa, with Trafigura having fixed M/T «Astro Cygnus» for 260,000 tons of cargo, loading May 24, discharging US Gulf, at W/S 95. – Suezmax market in the North Sea remains quiet, with rates hovering around W/S 112.5, while Med. and 135,000-ton cargoes are at roughly W/S 120. – West African market should start stabilizing above W/S 210 for transatlantic voyages. – Aframaxes steady in the Med. and Cont., while Caribs are marginally firming. – In the Med., Janorc for 80,000 tons of cargo, loading beginning of May Black Sea, discharging Med., has fixed M/T «Apageon» at W/S 105. – In the Cont., Petrogal has fixed Dukkar tonnage for 80,000 tons of cargo, loading May 4 UK, discharging Portugal, at W/S 145. – In Caribs, Marathon for 70,000 tons of cargo, loading May 7, East Coast, Mexico, discharging US Gulf, has fixed M/T «Nord Pacific at W/S 160. – In Arabian Gulf, Shell has fixed M/T «Utik» for 270,000 tons of cargo, loading May 22, discharging South Africa at W/S 85. DRY CARGO Capesize rates in the East have dropped significantly ahead of Asian holidays. SMS has fixed M/V «Americana,» 148,982 dwt, built 1987, delivery South Korea May 1-2, trip via Indonesia, at USD 37,000 daily. – A significant sell-off in rates has started in the East too. On short T/C periods, Bunge has fixed M/V «Edfu,» 71,572 dwt, built 1998, delivery May 5 China, for 3-5 month period at USD 31,000 daily, while Hanjin has fixed M/V «Sydney King,» 69,421 dwt, built 1988, delivery May 2-6, redelivery Japan, at USD 25,000 daily. – In the Atlantic, Minfreight has fixed M/V «Bruno Salamon,» 73,965 dwt, built 1998, delivery US Gulf May 9-12, redelivery Med., at USD 35,000 daily and USD 750,000 ballast bonus. – On smaller sizes, Norden has fixed M/V «Olga Topic,» 45,483 dwt, built 1995, delivery USAC April 26-28, trip via US Gulf, redelivery W. Med., at USD 36,000 daily. – On ore cargoes, Noble has fixed M/V «Stonegate» for 180,000 tons of cargo, loading May 15-25 Australia, discharging China, at USD 12.00 per ton with 2-day load and 25,000 tons discharge.