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Hellenic shipping news
Baltic Index Extends Decline On Lower Rates Across Vesselsin Dry Bulk Market,International Shipping News
16/01/2025
The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index, which tracks rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, inched lower for a second consecutive session on Wednesday, dragged down by weaker rates across all vessels.
The index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, was down 17 points at 1,063 points.
The capesize index fell 23 points to 1,581 points.
Average daily earnings for capesize vessels, which typically transport 150,000-ton cargoes such as iron ore and coal, decreased by $191 to $13,109.
Iron ore futures extended gains, aided by China’s better-than-expected credit data but the rise was capped by fears of escalating trade tensions after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office next week.
The panamax index shed 12 points to 894 points, down for a sixth-straight session.
Average daily earnings for panamax vessels, which usually carry 60,000-70,000 tons of coal or grain, decreased by $108 to $8,050.
The supramax index fell 15 points to 783 points, its lowest level in 17-months.
Elsewhere, oil shipping rates extended their rally on expectations of a tightening in global tanker supply from wider U.S. sanctions on Russia’s fleet and traders’ demand for ships to load Middle East oil for Asia, industry sources said on Wednesday.
Source: Reutersport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
Asia Fuel Oil: Spot Premiums Extend Climb; Market Eyes Volatile Hsfo Trendin International Shipping News
16/01/2025
Spot premiums for fuel oil inched further up on Wednesday, while the market expects volatile trading to persist for high sulphur fuel oil (HSFO).
The impact of the latest sanctions was not immediately clear on Russian supply flows, several traders said, with more clarity expected into February.
There will likely be more support for prices and premiums of unsanctioned HSFO barrels, though overall benchmark gains appear capped as inventories in Asia remained high in the near term.
Margins for 380-cst HSFO retreated day-on-day at discounts of about $5.50 per barrel, based on LSEG data for Brent-basis cracks.
Meanwhile, cracks for very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) closed at premiums above $10.40 per barrel.
Backwardation spreads were largely stable for VLSFO at the prompt months on Wednesday, though HSFO spreads widened amid more volatile trading in recent sessions, said market sources.
INVENTORY DATA
– Fujairah heavy fuel inventories (FUJHD04) eased 4.5% to 8.52 million barrels (1.34 million tons) in the week to Jan. 13, based on FOIZ data published by S&P Global Commodity Insights.
OTHER NEWS
– Oil prices rose on Wednesday, trimming losses from the previous day, as the focus turned back to potential supply disruptions from sanctions on Russian tankers, though gains were capped as the market awaited more clarity on their impact.
– Oil shipping rates extended their rally on expectations of a tightening in global tanker supply from wider U.S. sanctions on Russia’s fleet and traders’ demand for ships to load Middle East oil for Asia, industry sources said on Wednesday.
– Colonial Pipeline, the largest U.S. fuel pipeline operator, said that the main artery moving gasoline from the U.S. Gulf Coast to the East Coast has been shut since Monday night due to a potential spill in Paulding County, Georgia.
– A joint venture of Shell and CNOOC plans to expand its petrochemical facility in southern China’s Guangdong province in a project targeted for completion in 2028, it said on Wednesday.
WINDOW TRADES
– 180-cst HSFO: No trade
– 380-cst HSFO: No trade
– 0.5% VLSFO: One trade
Source: Reutersport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
India-Russia Term Deal Talks For Crude Oil On Hold Amid Sanctionsin Freight News
16/01/2025
Discussions on a term deal for crude oil purchases from Russia have ground to a halt in the wake of the latest sanctions on Russia, sources in the Ministry of Petroleum said.
A joint front of state-owned refiners had been discussing the purchase of crude oil from Russia under a term deal. Crude oil from Russia is usually purchased at spot prices, while long-term contracts are reserved for crude from India’s traditional import sources in West Asia. Spot purchases allow refineries to secure different grades of oil that may otherwise be unavailable.
However, last week’s sanctions on Russian oil and gas entities by the United States have put the talks on hold. Official sources have said the government is preoccupied with analysing the sanctions, which may cut off India’s access to discounted Russian crude and force it to buy at market prices. “Any deal in the current geopolitical climate requires careful planning and lengthy discussions so that shipments do not suddenly stop due to sanctions. But the escalating sanctions have complicated the matter,” an official source said.
The government does not expect an immediate disruption in supplies, as volumes already in transit would take six-eight weeks to reach India. That would allow sufficient time for the geopolitical situation to evolve, as US President-elect Donald Trump is set to assume office on January 20, another source said. “This will give our refiners enough time to strike alternative arrangements, with Russia or otherwise. That may change the need for a term deal,” he said.
A term deal would reduce volatility in Russian crude prices and could allow India consistent access to Russian oil at lower prices. India remains prepared to continue purchasing oil from Russian companies permitted to make such sales, as prices are favourable. Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has repeatedly emphasised this point.
Rosneft deal also in limbo?
Talks on the term deal had gained momentum after Russian state oil firm Rosneft signed a record deal last month to supply crude oil to Reliance Industries (RIL). Pegged at nearly 500,000 barrels per day (bpd), the deal is reportedly the largest energy agreement ever between the two countries. The 10-year agreement, amounting to 0.5 per cent of global supply, is worth roughly $13 billion annually at current prices.
However, sources said the deal was now under a cloud of uncertainty after Rosnefteflot, the marine transportation arm of Rosneft, was hit with sanctions in the latest round of economic measures by Washington, DC. Up to 13 marine vessels owned by the company, including eight Russian-flagged crude oil tankers, have been sanctioned.
As the second-largest Russian company by market capitalisation and one of the country’s highest earners, Rosneft has in recent years sought to increase its presence in the Indian market, officials said. In early December, Russian President Vladimir Putin had said Rosneft had invested $20 billion in India, though he did not elaborate further. Energy ties are expected to be a priority during Putin’s upcoming visit to India, scheduled for early December, according to the Kremlin.
Source: Business Standardport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
Risks From Unregulated Tanker Fleet Rising, Un Shipping Chief Saysin International Shipping News
16/01/2025
The safety risks posed by unregulated oil tankers are rising, and the so-called shadow fleet is a threat to both the maritime environment and seafarers, the head of the United Nations’ shipping agency said on Tuesday.
The shadow fleet refers to hundreds of ships used by Russia to move oil, in violation of international restrictions imposed on it over the Ukraine war, as well as by oil exporters such as Iran and Venezuela hit by US sanctions.
At least 65 oil tankers dropped anchor this week at multiple locations, including off the coasts of China and Russia, since the United States announced a new sanctions package on Jan. 10.
“The risk is growing in relation to the environmental impact and the safety of the seafarers as the shadow fleet grows,” Arsenio Dominguez, Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), told a news conference.
“We see it by different accidents and events that have taken place.”
Dominguez, who could not comment on sanctions, said his biggest concern was with aging tankers, which were “putting people onboard at risk and the environment as well.”
“The more that ships start looking to … avoid meeting the IMO requirements, the more that we will have situations like we have been experiencing in the last part of 2024.”
There have been a number of incidents involving collisions and shadow fleet vessels breaking down in recent months.
Dominguez said an IMO meeting would follow up in March on a resolution adopted in 2023 aimed at greater scrutiny of ship-to-ship oil transfers in open seas — a frequent risk with shadow fleet tankers which carry out such transfers with little regard for safety. He said he had also met with smaller flag registry countries, which typically provide flagging for shadow fleet tankers.
Commercial ships must be registered, or flagged, with a particular country to ensure they are complying with internationally recognized safety and environmental rules.
Shipping industry sources say many of the smaller flag registries are lax about enforcing compliance and also sanctions regulations.
“Substandard shipping …has been on the agenda at IMO for many years,” Dominguez said.
Source: Reutersport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
Fearnleys Week 3 2025in Weekly Shipbrokers Reports
16/01/2025
The V-market continued its upward trajectory yesterday, and as predicted WS 70 was logged MEG/East numerous times
Source: Fearnleys A.Sport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
East Of Suez Vlcc Rates Jump After New Us Sanctions On Russian Oilin International Shipping News
16/01/2025
East of Suez VLCC rates jumped as the US crackdown on “shadow fleet” tankers carrying sanctioned oil from Russia and Iran prompted shipowners to seize the opportunity to capitalize on China’s and India’s demand for unsanctioned crude.
Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, assessed the freight rate for the 270,000 mt Persian Gulf-China route at w65 on Jan. 14, equivalent to $14.35 for moving 1 mt of crude oil from the Persian Gulf to China.
The rate has soared 52.9% from w42.25 on the first trading day of 2025, Jan. 2, reaching the highest level since the end of May 2024.
Platts’ Global VLCC Index (GVI 7), which tracks the weighted time-charter equivalent or daily earnings for non-scrubber, non-eco VLCCs across seven key routes using 0.5% marine fuel, leaped 216.5% since Jan. 2 to $41,113/d on Jan. 14. Meanwhile, the GVI 7 tracking scrubber-equipped and eco VLCCs climbed 123.8% during the period to $52,504/d.
A fresh package of sanctions tightened curbs against Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas and added more than 180 ships, dozens of oil traders, oilfield service providers, tanker owners and managers, insurance companies and energy officials to a blacklist.
Shipowners anticipate that the latest sanctions on tankers will prompt China and India to replace lost Russian barrels with regular, unsanctioned crudes from other parts of the globe.
This development has also bolstered Middle Eastern crude premiums and strengthened US medium sour Mars crude.
Additionally, the shift in the loading window from January to February in the Persian Gulf is generating a much-anticipated surge in loading demand for VLCCs, which struggled through 2024 due to lackluster oil consumption.
Since the week ended Jan. 10, several major players, including Shell, Chevron, Unipec, Formosa, PTT, Exxon, Shenghong and BP, have snapped up VLCCs for the end of January and early February loading windows from the Persian Gulf, according to market sources.
“It started off with the Atlantic being very active, which is why some charterers struggled for a week. Now the list in the [Persian Gulf] is balanced, but it could tighten at any time since the west side is up. Of course, the sanctions are also a catalyst,” a charterer said.
The sanctions are expected to prompt charterers to seek non-Russian crude, opting for supplies from other crude-producing regions such as West Africa, which could influence the freight market.
However, doubts persist about whether the loss of Russian crude oil barrels will lead to a lasting benefit for the freight market.
“Buyers currently have the flexibility to accept delivered cargo at later loading dates, and it remains unclear whether owners can afford to wait for the deferred loading window due to changes in loading dates,” a chartering executive said.
A shipbroker said if US President-elect Donald Trump intensifies pressure on Iran, sanctions on Russian crude could be relaxed, opening up several possibilities this year. “However, we will have to see how long this situation unfolds.”
Before the US initiated a crackdown on Russia’s oil and shipping industry, the US Department of Defense blacklisted China’s state shipping company, China COSCO Shipping Corp. Ltd. Additionally, a statement issued Jan. 6 by Shandong Port Group, owned by the Qingdao city government, declared that shipping companies and vessel entities on the OFAC sanctions list would be prohibited from docking, unloading at its ports and receiving any port services.
Following Platts’s assessment of the Persian Gulf-China route at w65 on Jan. 14, several overnight fixtures indicated that the same route has continued to rally to w70.
Source: Plattsport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
Russian Oil Products Trapped At Sea By Us Sanctions, Lseg Data Showsin International Shipping News
16/01/2025
Nearly 500,000 metric tons of Russian oil products are trapped on tankers hit by U.S. sanctions, LSEG data showed on Wednesday.
On Jan. 10, new Russia-related sanctions targeted more than 180 vessels and insurance companies, adding to the impact of similar restrictions imposed by United Kingdom and Europe Union.
The vessels under the latest U.S. sanctions include nine tankers that loaded oil products at Russian Baltic and Black Sea ports in December and January.
Four of them – Cup, Aquatica, Turaco and Onyx – are carrying in total around 280,000 tons of fuel oil, destined for India, Turkey and Singapore, LSEG data shows.
Another of the tankers – Ariadne – was loaded in December with about 35,000 tons of naphtha in the Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga. It is drifting near Egyptian port of Port Said, according to shipping data.
Four other vessels from the sanctions list are carrying in total around 160,000 tons of ultra-low sulphur diesel and gasoil of Russian origin.
One of those cargoes – Pravasi – is discharging at the Brazilian port of Santos. Three other vessels – Symphony, Jupiter and Talisman – are on their way to Turkey, according to LSEG data.
Although there is a transition period, allowing the discharge of cargoes that has already been agreed, traders said concern about penalties has slowed activity.
Since the sanctions were announced, at least 65 oil tankers have dropped anchor at multiple locations, including off the coasts of China and Russia, ship tracking data showed.
Source: Reutersport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
Us Consumer Prices Rise Slightly Above Expectations In Decemberin World Economy News
16/01/2025
U.S. consumer prices increased slightly more than expected in December amid higher costs for energy goods, pointing to still elevated inflation that aligns with the Federal Reserve’s projections for fewer interest rate cuts this year.
The consumer price index rose 0.4% last month after climbing 0.3% in November, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Wednesday. In the 12 months through December, the CPI advanced 2.9% after increasing 2.7% in November.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the CPI gaining 0.3% and rising 2.9% year-on-year.
Progress bringing inflation back to the U.S. central bank’s 2% target hit snag in the second half of last year.
A resilient economy, the threat of broad tariffs on imported goods and mass deportations of undocumented immigrants — actions that are deemed inflationary — also have led the U.S. central bank to project a shallower rate-cut path this year.
President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration has also pledged tax cuts, which would juice up the economy.
Consumers’ inflation expectations soared in January, with households concerned that tariffs would raise goods prices.
Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the CPI increased 0.2% in December. The so-called core CPI had risen 0.3% for four straight months. In the 12 months through December, the so-called core CPI increased 3.2% after climbing 3.3% in November.
No rate cut is expected at the Fed’s Jan. 28-29 policy meeting. While economists see fewer rate cuts this year, they are divided on whether the central bank will reduce borrowing costs again before the second half of the year.
Goldman Sachs expects two rate cuts this year, in June and December, a number revised down from three. Bank of America Securities believes the Fed’s easing cycle is over.
The central bank launched its easing cycle in September and has lowered its benchmark overnight interest rate by 100 basis points to the current 4.50%-4.75% range.
The last reduction was in December when policymakers also projected two rate cuts this year instead of the four they had forecast in September. The policy rate was hiked by 5.25 percentage points between March 2022 and July 2023.
Source: Reutersport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
The Global Economy In 2025: Starting Strongly But Facing Big Unknownsin World Economy News
16/01/2025
Today’s volatile world – ongoing geopolitical conflicts, uncertainty around the path under a new US administration, and long-term challenges about an aging population and the emergence of artificial intelligence – make for any economic outlook for 2025 to be tentative. However, in economic terms the world is starting the year positively.
The global economy is completing one of the most successful soft-landings we have ever seen. There are few historical records of periods of global monetary tightening, with widespread interest rate hikes, that have been so successful in reducing inflation without a significant deterioration in economic activity or rise in unemployment.
Interest rates
The global interest rate hikes applied in 2022 and 2023 eventually managed to return inflation to acceptable levels. Today, it is already heading towards the 2% target in the United States and Eurozone. And it was achieved with the world growing at around 3% in 2024, a reasonable level of growth in the circumstances.
So, 2025 begins with the world at an advanced stage of interest rate cuts, declining inflation, sustained growth and low unemployment levels. The strength of the US economy means it is on a glide path so smooth that it seems it might not land at all.
Europe, on the other hand, is in a timid cyclical recovery, with two different realities between countries in the south and the north. Growth is strong in the south, especially in Spain, but Germany, which represents 30% of the region’s GDP, is beset with structural problems and the political situation in France is delicate.
China continues its structural slowdown, moving from an annual growth rate of 5% to 4% in the coming years as its economy adapts to a more sedate middle-income country.
Donald Trump’s economic agenda: The big unknown in the US
The big question this year will be what economic policies Donald Trump will finally implement. The market has anticipated the ‘Trump Trade’. This predicts the new administration will deliver more growth and deregulation in the short term but at the cost of slightly higher inflation. Interest rates will then settle slightly higher than previously expected, with consequences for the strength of the dollar worldwide.
The unknown is whether the considerable growth rate in the US will be to the detriment of growth in other parts of the world with weaker currencies – as we are already observing – and create a period of global divergence.
Europe’s necessary competitiveness reset
For Europe, Trump’s arrival brings back to the table the Letta and Draghi reports that called for a total ‘reset’ of the region’s competitiveness to avoid missing the growth train. In the last 13 years, the average growth of the U.S. economy was 1 percentage point higher than that of Europe.
Simultaneously, the fiscal pressure in the United States today is almost 15 percentage points lower than in Europe (25% of GDP in the US, against 39% on average in the five largest European countries). Europe must reset its economy based on higher productivity that stimulates competitiveness. Regulation must also be structured to retrieve Europe’s lost growth.
Latin America must monitor its monetary and fiscal policy
The countries in the region also face the effects of the new US administration’s policies. After successfully navigating the global interest rate hikes cycle, the strength of the dollar now puts pressure on some local currencies and central banks must stay focused on monetary policy and addressing the fiscal deviations inherited from recent years.
This, along with declining commodity prices, will require skilful management of economic policy. The region has good external fundamentals in terms of levels of reserves and trade balances, although it still needs to advance on the fiscal front to bring debt to sustainable levels in the long term.
Source: Banco Santanderport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025
Hellenic shipping news
Oil Hedging Hit Record High Last Week After New Us Sanctions On Russiain Oil & Companies News
16/01/2025
Demand to lock in oil and gas prices jumped to a record high on Friday on the AEGIS hedging marketplace, as the harshest U.S. sanctions yet on Russian energy trade sent oil prices to multi-month highs.
AEGIS, which says its clients’ business represents about 25-30% of total U.S. oil production, recorded the highest trading activity to date on its platforms on Jan. 10, as producers capitalized on higher volatility, said Jay Stevens, director of market analytics at AEGIS.
Hedging can help producers reduce risk and protect their production from sharp moves in the market by locking in a price. It can also give traders opportunities to profit from volatility.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CL1! settled at $76.57 per barrel on Jan. 10, marking a three-month high. Global benchmark, Brent crude futures BRN1! settled at $79.76 a barrel, after earlier in the session exceeding $80 a barrel for the first time since Oct.7.
Oil prices began to climb after traders in Europe and Asia circulated an unverified document detailing the sanctions.
Later on Friday, the U.S. Treasury formally announced new sanctions on the Russian energy sector, including oil majors Gazprom Neft SIBN and Surgutneftegaz SNGS to try to curtail Moscow’s ability to fund its war with Ukraine.
The sanctions also target over 180 tankers and dozens of oil traders, oilfield service providers, insurance companies and energy officials.
Source: Reutersport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025Hellenic shipping news
Eia Extends Five Key Energy Forecasts Through December 2026in Oil & Companies News
16/01/2025
In our January 2024 Short-Term Energy Outlook, which includes data and forecasts through December 2026, we forecast five key energy trends that we expect will help shape markets over the next two years.
Electricity consumption will start growing, driven by new demand sources
After almost two decades of relatively little change, electricity consumption grew by 2% in 2024, and we forecast it will continue growing by 2% in both 2025 and 2026, mostly as a result of demand from new semiconductor and battery manufacturing factories and from data centers.
Solar power supplies most of the increase in generation in our forecast. We expect the electric power sector to add 26 gigawatts (GW) of new solar capacity in 2025 and 22 GW in 2026. We expect these capacity additions will increase U.S. solar generation by 34% in 2025 and by 17% in 2026.
Global oil consumption growth in our forecast continues to be slightly less than the pre-pandemic trend. We expect global consumption of liquid fuels to increase by 1.3 million barrels per day (b/d) in 2025 and 1.1 million b/d in 2026, driven by consumption growth in non-OECD countries. Much of this growth is in Asia, where India is now the leading source of global oil demand growth in our forecast.
After reaching an annual record of 13.2 million b/d in 2024, U.S. crude oil production is forecast to average 13.5 million b/d this year. We expect crude oil production to be largely unchanged in 2026 as drilling and completion activity slows.
The Permian region’s share of total U.S. production will continue to increase, accounting for more than 50% of all U.S. crude oil production in 2026. Despite this increased share, the expected production growth in the Permian in 2026 will largely be offset by production contraction in other regions.
We expect exports of natural gas by pipeline and as LNG to increase in 2025, with most of the increase coming from LNG exports. Two new LNG export facilities—Plaquemines LNG and Corpus Christi LNG Stage 3—started producing LNG in December 2024, and Plaquemines LNG loaded and shipped its first LNG cargo on December 26.
Source: EIAport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025Hellenic shipping news
Iron Ore Near Two-Week High On Strong China Data, U.S. Tariff Worries Cap Gainsin Commodity News,Dry Bulk Market
16/01/2025
Iron ore futures extended gains on Wednesday, aided by China’s better-than-expected credit data but the rise was capped by fears of escalating trade tensions after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office next week.
Trump has pledged to impose a 60% tariff on Chinese goods.
The most-traded May iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade 0.71% higher at 782.5 yuan ($106.73) a metric ton, after hitting the highest since Jan. 2 at 787.5 yuan a ton earlier in the session.
The benchmark February iron ore (SZZFG5) on the Singapore Exchange rose 0.26% to $100.6 a ton as of 0709 GMT after touching $101.15, the highest since Jan. 2, earlier in the day.
Chinese banks extended 990 billion yuan ($135.03 billion) in new loans last month, up from November 2024, outpacing analysts’ forecasts and boosting sentiment in the ferrous market.
Prices of the key steelmaking ingredient have gained around 4% so far this week on rising stimulus bets and strong steel trade data.
“The market also remains hopeful of further stimulus measure after recent comments from Vice Finance Minister Liao Min that China has sufficient fiscal firepower to respond to external challenges,” ANZ analysts said.
However, iron ore price gains were curbed on demand worries amid China’s lingering property woes and slowing economic growth due to possible tariff hikes from the U.S.
Country Garden, once China’s biggest developer and now facing a liquidation lawsuit, on Tuesday reported steep losses in its long-overdue 2023 and interim 2024 financial results.
China’s economic growth will likely slow to 4.5% in 2025 and cool further to 4.2% in 2026, a Reuters poll showed.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE gained ground with coking coal and coke up 0.54% and 0.64%, respectively.
Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange advanced. Rebar RBF1! rose 0.67%, hot-rolled coil EHR1! climbed 0.92% while wire rod (SWRcv1) nudged down 0.08% and stainless steel HRC1! dipped 0.15%.
Source: Reutersport-and-ship
Jan 16, 2025