New York: Dry bulk carrier owners were avoiding sailing their ships to the Middle East and Africa due to a lack of chartering demand in that region, ship brokers said on Friday.
This, in turn, has squeezed vessel availability and jacked up freight rates for those voyages.
This week, Cargill booked the Panamax-sized Pansolar at $24,500 per day and a hefty voyage bonus of $500,000, sharply higher than other fixtures in the US Gulf Coast.
One week ago, the Panamax freight rate for US Gulf Coast loading was pegged at about $21,000 per day.
The ship was expected to load grains from the US Gulf Coast in early August for delivery to Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
"There is definitely a premium for ships heading to the Middle East and Africa, because not many ship owners want to go there right now," a broker in London said.
The reluctance to sail to the Middle East was attributed to rough sailing conditions during the monsoon season and a lack of chartering demand. "The ship could sail there, but it won't be able to pick up any new business after cargo discharge," the broker said, adding that the voyage bonus could help cover a ballast voyage to the next loading point after delivery.
The ongoing conflict in Israel and Lebanon was not deterring ship owners from sailing to Saudi Arabia or some parts of the Middle East, some brokers said.
"Ship owners are reluctant to sail to the East Mediterranean, but the rest of the Middle East region is fine so far," a second broker said.
Dry carriers were seen fixed for delivery to Egypt from Europe, but some brokers said that there could be difficulty securing ships for delivery to Iran and Iraq.
Last week, one ship owner decided against shipping a handy size wheat cargo from France to the eastern Mediterranean.
An oil tanker sailing to Banias petroleum terminal in Syria was fixed at a significant premium of about $6,000 per day to the market rate.
