Baltic Dry Index

Uncle Festivus said:

Looks like the banks are gonna have to hide another $100Billion or so off their books somewhere?

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) ”” The warning signs being flashed by the collapsing Baltic Dry Index (BDI), a leading global economic indicator, may reflect the folly of misguided expectations during the prior global economic boom, according to Hong Kong-based shipping analysts.
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Macquarie analyst said Thursday the slump in the broader dry-bulk index represents “too much capacity in the face of more modest growth of trade volumes.”
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However, there could be knock-on effects if the supply glut results in a financial storm throughout the shipping industry.
Business Insider quoted Basil Karatzas, the chief executive of Karatzas Marine Advisors, as saying European banks could face nearly $100 billion in losses to restructure the $500 billion in shipping loans on their books.

Contagion....

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Glen48 said:

Here is the News:
http://www.alt-market.com/articles/540-baltic-dry-index-signals-renewed-market-collapse

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Glen48 said:

Is that a chart showing the direction sinking ship's take to collect the insurance?

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drsmith said:

Too many ships or not enough cargo ?

It's moving south again.

http://www.dryships.com/pages/report.asp

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"Abandonment cases are counted when shipowners fail to pay crews two or more months in wages or don’t cover the cost to send crew members home, according to the International Maritime Organization, a United Nations agency."
The UN agency recorded a doubling in the number of abandonment cases for 2020, with the number expected to grow once again for 2021 particularly after a noticeable surge in cases now getting media attention.
Some governments require sailors to remain aboard as guarantors until shipowners pay port authorities for berth fees and other charges. More often, sailors refuse to disembark, convinced they will never recoup months or years of lost wages if they leave. Seafarers stuck on board generally borrow money from friends and family to feed themselves and crewmates.

Many say they will stay put until the ship is sold for scrap, which can take years, rather than go home empty-handed.

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Abandoned seafarers have described the ships as turning into a "prison" and a "slave ship". One ongoing saga off Romania in the Black Sea involves four crewmembers awaiting the resolution of a high level Romanian court case to determine who is responsible for payment of debts involving the ship's owner. Legally they simply aren't allowed off the vessel. In some instances the WSJ documented stories of unpaid workers contemplating suicide. Some of them literally face starvation, and in these instances sometimes attract the help of local charities.
Moored ships hit by storms with crew aboard - yet not able to disembark - is another example of some of the more dramatic and immediate threats to safety these workers face. And then there's this instance noted in the WSJ report: "Off the coast of Yemen, one of the world’s largest oil supertankers, laden with 1.1 million barrels of crude, sits decaying in a war zone. An errant rocket or the ship’s corroding steel hull could trigger an explosion and massive spill."
Currently, there are efforts underway among a handful of large nations - namely China, Indonesia and the Philippines - whose ships make up the bulk of international sea freight traffic, to establish an 'abandonment fund' to help with emergency assistance for stranded crew. However, it could encourage companies to continue shrugging off responsibility, as is still continually happening according to the report.

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With the shipping crisis now in full bloom, retailers like Walmart and Home Depot are taking matters into their own hands. Retail companies are now chartering cargo vessels themselves. The move aims to get imports moving faster and get them to store shelves.

“Chartering vessels is just one example of investments we’ve made to move products as quickly as possible,” said Joe Metzger, U.S. executive vice president of supply-chain operations at Walmart, which has hired a number of vessels this year.
Walmart recently hired a dry bulk cargo ship to help with the retail chain’s supply chain woes. The company began chartering cargo vessels as it tries to get its orders to the US as soon as possible. Disruptions in the delivery of goods are currently threatening supplies for the upcoming holiday season.
By getting their own vessels, retailers hope to bypass cargo terminal ports. This will also help them get precious cargo space needed for their many imported products.
The current shipping crisis is dealing with many problems simultaneously. This includes COVID outbreaks, US-China trade skirmishes, container shortages, and extreme weather.
As a result of the above, global shipping is crawling to a halt in overbooked terminal ports. In fact, more than 60 container ships lie anchored near the Los Angeles and Long Beach terminals.

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Joules MM1 said:

spoke to two sales reps from two diff wholesalers today, both share same story,
"it's like a sharemarket with competing prices"
one experience was that an agreement to ship stock from China at 2200 container but by the time the ship had left the cost had gone to 6k

inflation, what inflation ?

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