Shipowners avoid calling at Turkish ports due to growing congestion, brokers say

Shipowners have increasingly begun to avoid calling at Turkish ports on the Sea of ​​Marmara due to increased congestion, which has become one of the factors driving up rates on this route.

This was reported by ASAP Agri analyst and Atria Brokers freight broker Pavlo Lysenko.

After a short pause last week, market activity in sea transportation has increased again, which has led to a further increase in freight rates for the coal fleet.

According to him, the tonnage deficit still persists, and shipowners are firmly defending their positions during negotiations. At the same time, more and more companies are avoiding calling at Turkish ports on the Sea of ​​Marmara due to increased congestion. This has also become an additional factor driving up rates on this route.

In the Handysize segment, rates remain stable on most routes – due to the limited number of cargoes, shipowners are unable to dictate terms. At the same time, freight to Tunisia has increased by $1-2 per ton compared to last week.

According to Atria Brokers, the Panamax freight rate for corn from Ukrainian deepwater ports to South China remains at $46-47 per ton.

In the Handysize segment, shipping 30,000 tons of corn to the east coast of Italy is estimated at $24-25 per ton.

In the container segment, the freight rate for transporting 6,000 tons of corn from the Danube ports of Ukraine to the East Coast increased by $1 to $36-38 per ton week-on-week.

USM previously reported that the OAIC contracted about 600,000 tons of soft wheat in the latest tender at a price slightly lower than the September price.