A general lull in the sale-and-purchase market for bulkers has not discouraged some players from pouncing on what they consider bargains amid sluggish or falling asset values.

Far Eastern companys are prominent amid the few parties expressing interest in ageing panamaxes, as two reported deals highlight this week.

The first concerns the 74,700-dwt Topeka (built 2000). The Hudong Zhonghua-built vessel, which has been in the fleet of George Economou company TMS Dry, fetched nearly $6m, which is about $1m above its scrap price, according to VesselsValue.

Chinese interests are believed to have bought the ship. “Chinese are buying, as assets are very cheap,” Zisis Stilianos, an S&P broker with Athens-based Intermodal, said.

The Topeka, which is the oldest unit in TMS Dry’s fleet, has been a sales candidate for quite some time.

Economou executives circulated the vessel in November last year.

It speaks volumes about the drop in asset values that the same ship was reported sold in January 2018 for about $9m, in a deal that ultimately failed.

However, just getting rid of the vessel should be considered a success for Economou, given the coronavirus' dire impact on the S&P market.

“We have seen difficulties in undertaking superficial inspections as well as delivery of vessels in regions, which have been severely hit by the virus outbreak,” Allied, another Greek brokerage, said in its latest weekly report on 10 February.

“We are likely to see things take a further downturn over the coming days,” the report concluded. The search for bargain deals is a stronger motive for buyers than any belief in a market recovery, Allied's analysts explained.

Another rumoured Greek panamax sale is a telling sign of the fragility of the S&P market.

Navios Maritime Holdings, one of Angeliki Frangou’s US-listed companies, is said to have sold the 76,700-dwt Navios Star (built 2002) for between $6.2m and $6.6m, according to some brokers in Greece and the US.

However, other market sources suggest the deal has not been finalised, with its Chinese buyers hoping to achieve a lower price. The Navios Star is Navios Maritime Holdings' oldest vessel.

Deals were much easier to conclude before the coronavirus epidemic. In a deal first reported last month, Athens-based Niriis Shipping added its fifth panamax in less than a year.

The company emerged last week as the new manager of the 74,400-dwt Underdog (built 2006), a vessel first reported sold by Kassian Maritime on 24 January for about $8.1m.

Clients of Niriis, whose executives say it is merely a shipmanagement company, are thought to have spent more than $50m since March to acquire five panamaxes and one handysize bulker. All these ships were built between 2004 and 2007.