- Dry bulk shipping faces at least another year of pain, according to a new report from Drewry Shipping Consultants, which says companies in the industry will not return to profitability until at least 2017.
- Drewry says its dry bulk freight rate index fell 14.5% in September from August, and rates have fallen another 13.8% between September and November, although numbers for the full Q4 will not be available until early next year.
- "Demand has almost dried up,” Drewry’s lead analyst says. “China’s iron ore imports have stagnated, China’s coal imports have come down massively and India’s coal import growth has also slowed down."
- Drewry forecasts demand for iron ore growing at 3%-4% over the next few years, but says demand for coal, especially in China, will not rebound any time soon.
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