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The
Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, which
tracks rates to ship dry commodities, eased on
Wednesday as Asian demand slowed.
The
index, which gauges the cost of shipping
resources including iron ore, cement, grain,
coal and fertiliser, fell 10 points to 2,413
points. In recent months Chinese demand for iron
ore -- the primary material in the manufacture
of steel -- has driven freight market activity
while adding to swings on the main index.
However, the build up of ships in Chinese ports
has reduced in the last month as import activity
fell and analysts say there are too many ships
available to give the market a reason to rise.
"Imports (of iron ore) from India have come off
because of the monsoon season but the primary
reason for the lacklustre market is that port
congestion in China has fallen away," one
shipping analyst said.
There have been growing expectations that
freight rates could get a lift from expected
interest for iron ore from European buyers as
well as in Japan and South Korea.
But concerns continue to grow over the rising
number of new ships set to hit the market in the
coming months despite indications of vessel
cancellations and delays, analysts said.
The Baltic's Capesize index dropped 1.90 percent
on Wednesday, although the Panamax index of
smaller sized ships rose 3.23 percent.
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