Any ships left over from the Russian services that were culled were quickly put on other trades that were “limping along” with insufficient capacity. “The sustained robust demand is allowing carriers to employ ships on different routes with ease, while several charterers in many places are looking for smaller tonnage,” Alphaliner added.
Despite several weeks of declines in spot market indices, “the market fundamentals remain unchanged,” according to the expert, who added that demand remained high “while the availability of tonnage is quite restricted.”
A London-based shipbroker informed that ocean carriers had “not lost their appetites for new tonnage”, adding: “We have been told to refer anything that comes on our radar or might come on the market, and not to be put off by high daily hire rates or long periods demanded by owners.
“A few years ago, some carriers were hesitant to fix on durations longer than two years, but that is no longer the case, and lines are willing to talk about forward fixtures that will run for many years.”
The markets are still buzzing over Hapag Lloyd’s recent charter of six 13,806 teu ships currently on hire to competitor carrier Evergreen in the higher categories. Meanwhile, Japanese carrier ONE has extended the hire of sister ships 8,714 teu Conti Annapurna and Conti Conquest for five years at $65,000 per day in the VLCS sector of 7,500-12,900 teu vessels. Several other carriers were reportedly interested in the 17-year-old post-panamax vessels, but ONE was quick to agree to the extensions.
