Dry Bulk Shipping VIII

[lamborghini]

Dry bulk freight rates expected to bounce back early next year

Shipbrokers and charterers are optimistic that dry bulk freight rates will rebound from their seven-month low at the beginning of next year, said a top official of a ship brokerage firm in Dubai. Industry players are hopeful that stability in commodity prices will begin to make a return at the end of the year through to next year, resuscitating the dry bulk market currently at the brink of a downturn.

"We expect freight rates to bounce back, although this will not be sudden. We believe that commodity prices will start to rise up again towards the end of December," Aazam Ghani, Director of Ocean Bulk Shipping in Dubai told Emirates Business.

"At the beginning of the year, the market performance was robust, but the global economic crisis has hit commodity and bunker prices hard, affecting the dry bulk market."

Following several years of a boom at the back of high demand from developing economies, led by China, freight rates have deeply fallen from record highs. Demand from China, Europe and the US has fallen as a result of the global economic slowdown.

Ghani said people had stopped buying commodities because they are not certain of the market trends. "Today if you buy for $10, the next day its $7, so nobody is ready to buy, unless the market stabilises. This has affected demand for vessels," noted Ghani.

The global credit crisis is holding back ......read more

Emirates Business

[lamborghini]

Chinese mill snubs Vale's ore demands

Brazilian mining giant Vale appears to have little chance in pressing their Chinese clients to pay more for iron ore, as demand for iron ore weakens and with steel prices fall.

China’s eighth largest steel company, Jinan Iron and Steel, said they had refused to pay the higher price requested by Vale and the Brazilian company had stopped supplying iron ore to the mill for nearly two months.

Vale has demanded the second price-hike in this fiscal year in an earlier time, requesting its Chinese buyers to pay 11% to 11.5% more for imported iron ore.

“We are following the instruction of the China Iron and Steel Association that we should not accept the price hike. We are buying iron ore from Australia and India instead,” said an official from the raw material purchasing department of JIS who preferred not to be named.

The China Iron and Steel Association issued a statement on Tuesday that none of its members........read more

[lamborghini]

DRY bulk freight rate and earnings forecasts have been slashed by Cantor Fitzgerald, the US investment bank which is prominent in the shipping industry, in the face of growing fears of a global recession.

The bank has also dramatically reduced share price targets but maintains that dry bulk shares have been oversold and could represent a “good” long-term investment.

In its latest research, Cantor Fitzgerald has wielded the axe on freight rate forecasts for both the fourth quarter and 2009.

Next year’s forecasts for the capesize and panamax sectors have both been chopped by 39%, to $60,000 a day and $30,500, respectively, while the bank’s expectation for handymaxes is down 37% to $24,750 and that for handysize 36% to $19,500.

Cantor Fitzgerald has also reduced .........read more

[lamborghini]

Star Bulk Announces That Nobu Su Resigns From the Position of Director

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. announced yesterday that Mr. Nobu Su has resigned from his position as member of the Company's Board of Directors with immediate effect.

Mr. Su noted that the reason for his resignation is his wish to devote more time to his other business interests. Akis Tsirigakis, President and CEO of Star Bulk, commented: "We would like to thank Nobu Su for his service to the Board and acknowledge his contribution in the development of Star Bulk. In light of current market conditions, we would like to emphasize our company's financial health, having a strong balance sheet and liquidity.

Our stated time charter strategy, having amongst the highest levels of contracted revenue coverage, we believe has limited our exposure to current market volatility and protects our revenues. In this context, the contracted fleet operating days under time charter in 2008, 2009 and 2010 is currently 98%, 80% and 66% respectively."

Star Bulk is a global shipping company providing worldwide seaborne transportation solutions in the dry bulk sector. Star Bulk's vessels transport major bulks, which include iron ore, coal and grain and minor bulks such as bauxite, fertilizers and steel products. Star Bulk was incorporated in the Marshall Islands on December 13, 2006 and is headquartered in Athens, Greece.

Source: Star Bulk

[lamborghini]

BHP upbeat on China outlook

BHP Billiton is confident that the industrialisation of developing economies will continue to drive demand for its products but says volatility and uncertainty will continue in the short term.

The world's largest mining company today said it had delivered a "solid performance'' during the first quarter of the financial year amid a challenging supply environment.

"Chinese growth has softened during the quarter, albeit from very high levels,'' BHP said. "We expect volatility and uncertainty to continue in the short term.''

BHP shares have declined 34% since the end of June, while its takeover target Rio Tinto has fallen 46%, compared with an 18% pullback in the benchmark index.

Iron ore output during the three months to September 30 rose 15% to 29.82 million tonnes on the previous corresponding quarter as the company expanded projects in Western Australia.

Petroleum output increased by 15% to 34.8 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe) due to newly commissioned projects, despite the impact of two hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico.

Copper output was flat at 308,900 tonnes, with lower production at the Escondida mine in Chile offsetting an improved performance at Olympic Dam in South Australia.

BHP Billiton says copper output at Escondida is estimated to be about ten per cent lower in fiscal 2009.

Nickel output dropped by 31 per cent to 26,800 tonnes following a major furnace rebuild at the Kalgoorlie Nickel Smelter in WA and maintenance at the Yabulu refinery in Queensland.

Production of metallurgical coal, used in steelmaking, dropped by 4% to 9.21 million tonnes as the company recovers from flooding at the start of the year.

Aluminium output declined eight per cent during the first quarter to 309,000 tonnes due to continuing power supply issues in South Africa, which has resulted in the partial shutdown of the Bayside smelter.

Uranium production from Olympic Dam climbed 19% to 1,110 tonnes due to improved recoveries and a record amount of mined material.
Manganese ore output was 27% higher at 1830 tonnes after improved performance at GEMCO off the Northern Territory coast and Hotazel in South Africa.

BHP said increased availability of rail and port capacity in South Africa also helped to increase manganese ore production.

The company spent $166 million on mineral exploration during the first quarter and $148 million on petroleum exploration.