Black Sea-Med clean Handysize freight rates at six-year high on heavy cargo flow
Black Sea-Mediterranean Handysize freight rates, basis 30,000 mt, have hit a six-year high on the back of a rise in the number of cargoes in the market and weather delays from storms in the Black Sea, shipping sources said.
Rates on the route were assessed Worldscale 20 higher at w230 Wednesday, which equates to $29.16/mt, the highest since a $29.92/mt assessment October 7, 2008.
Inquiry from charterers in the Black Sea and Mediterranean has picked up in the past week partly because there was less incentive to store gasoil in the latter region as a result of a flattening of the contango structure for prompt 0.1% ICE gasoil futures, shipping and trading sources said.
“The contango situation for gasoil in December is seen at more or less break even, so the contango is not enough to justify the storage. There is a destocking rush at the moment,” a charterer said.
Some of the bigger storage hubs in the Mediterranean include Algeciras, Barcelona, and Malta.
Meanwhile in the Black Sea, the ports of Novorossiisk and Tuapse each faced loading delays, creating cargo queues for vessel owners on the prompt.
Owner sentiment has been so firm that charterers have begun to attempt to hold back additional stems from the market to dampen owners’ rate ideas, sources said.
“Charterers are not showing all their stems since they are scared about the freight levels,” one charterer said.
Source: Platts
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