The panamax bulker market reached its highest point in three months on Monday as tonnage waits day after day to cross the Panama Canal due to drought-driven draught restrictions.
The Baltic Exchange’s Panamax 5TC set of spot-rate averages across five key routes rose 2% on Monday to nearly $12,300 per day, rising above $12,200 per day for the first time since mid-May.
It has gained steadily over the past three weeks from $8,054 per day on 25 July, according to the exchange.
Kyla Shipping’s 81,400-dwt Athina L (built 2011), opening in the Moroccan port of Jorf Lasfar on 15 and 16 August, was rumoured to have been fixed for multiple laden legs in the Atlantic in the low- to mid-$14,000-per-day range.
On Friday, Efnav was rumoured to have fixed the 82,620-dwt Semiramis (built 2013) to Engelhart Commodities Trading Partners on 8 August at a lower $13,000 per day after delivering it at the Indian port of Haldia for a trip from east coast of South America to South East Asia.
There was also talk of a rate of $13,500 per day for redelivery in the Far East, according to the Baltic Exchange.
The Panama Canal Authority has limited draughts to 13.41 metres and vessel crossings to 32 ships per day as drought conditions curtail water levels at Gatun Lake, which supplies the water needed to lift ships.
As a result, the canal’s panamax and neo-panamax locks had a backlog of 165 ships waiting to transit the canal as of Thursday last week, according to Leth Agencies. Waiting times had got as high as 21 days.
“The highlight in the Atlantic remains the North Atlantic, which remains tight assisted by Panama Canal delays and increased mineral demand,” UK-based shipbroker Braemar wrote in a note on Thursday last week.
