Shanghai International Shipping Institute prosperity index declines

SHANGHAI International Shipping Institute's latest report shows that the Chinese shipping industry prosperity index was 94.54 points in the second quarter, in the slightly unprosperous level. The shipping industry confidence index was also in slightly unprosperous section at 63.42 points. The industry's deterioration has slightly worsened, according to the report, quoted by Xinhua.

In the second quarter, port operators kept a healthy growth. Carriers' prosperity index had climbed weakly for two quarters in a row. Shipping service providers' index hit the bottom and began to recover. But indexes of all of the three were still under the prosperity level.

Previous estimation said that the carriers' prosperity level will rise to the prosperity level at 100.76 points in the second quarter. But the actual figure was only 87.64 points. Container carriers' index climbed to the prosperous section at 119.40 points. Bulk carriers' were at slightly unprosperous section with 74.21 points.

The report also predicts that China's shipping business environment will continue to worsen in the third quarter and the shipping industry prosperity index will drop by 1.02 points over the last quarter to 93.52 points. Only seven per cent of the shipping enterprises are optimistic about the outlook in the third quarter, while 68 per cent are pessimistic. The confidence index for the third quarter is predicted to be at 60.06 points.

Survey shows that 75.97 per cent of the carriers think that full recovery of the market will not come before 2014. Bulk carriers are even more pessimistic with 87.88 per cent holding the same opinion.