January has not been kind to dry bulk, with rates barely breaking even, something that has clearly put pressure on secondhand values. For how long this slump remains divides opinion. Canny Greek owners clearly think an uptick in fortunes in the new Year of the Snake is some way off.
“It is interesting to note many Greek owners have now elected to accept the prices offered in order to dispose of their older tonnage, largely from Far East buyers, rather than hold on and hope for improved levels in the near future,” Gibson noted in a recent S&P report. These actions, Gibson suggested, give an indication of their ideas on market developments in the short term in that they see no reason to retain these elderly vessels, especially with costly surveys looming.
A market recovery is typically anticipated by mid-February.
However, the crucial question, as posed by analysts at Hartland, remains whether this recovery will be substantial enough to halt the decline in the secondhand market or simply slow its momentum.
“Already there are hefty discounts across the secondhand market and they are sufficient to encourage some buyers to step in,” Hartland noted in its most recent weekly report.
The 2018-built ultramax CMB Rubens ultramax was sold to Bangladeshi owner Meghna for $27.6m while two 2010-built supramaxes – Protector St Raphael and Papayannis III – went for $11m and $11.8m, respectively.
Meanwhile, Hartland described how the “bloodletting” continues in the older panamax sector, with the sale of the 2005-built Navios Asteriks for just $8m.
Tanker asset prices eased all month. Buyers, especially from China, were most interested in aframaxes.
2010-built Crude Centurion, 2008-built Sofia II and 2007-built Sea Falcon were sold last week for $33m, $31m and $30.5m respectively, while the recent sale of the 2008-built MR tanker Horizon Athena for just $18.6m showed how prices are in free fall.
Similar tonnage was being touted for more than $20m earlier this month.
Hong Kong-registered outfit Young Honest Shipping emerged as the taker of the first vintage VLCC sold this year. Young Honest bought the 20-year-old, 308,800 dwt, scrubber-fitted Rolin from Viet My Petrol Transportation with brokers suggesting a price of $31m, a significant drop in price compared to similar sales sealed only weeks ago.
In the container sector, with the news of a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict and the subsequent announcement from the Houthis that they will pause Red Sea attacks while this holds, a number of major players are adopting what Braemar described as a “wait and see” approach to acquisitions.
Turkey’s Medkon moved for the 1,100 teu Contship Med, paying Contships Management $7m for the 2004-built vessel, the sixth ship Medkon has taken from Contships over the past 10 months.
Aristides Pittas-led Euroseas sold the 1998-built 2,008 teu Diamantis P to an undisclosed buyer for $13.15m.
Energy News Beat