Stephen Fordham, chairman of Singapore-based Masterbulk, admits the market is “awful” in today’s latest installment of Splash TV.
Fordham, who chairs the Westfal-Larsen open hatch line, cited the oversupply of tonnage and demand not growing at the anticipated rate as key reasons for the current crisis, especially for those in dry bulk.
“Scrapping needs to increase and new ordering needs to be controlled,” said Fordham, who was a partner with law firm Wikborg Rein prior to Masterbulk.
Fordham also said cash flow is the biggest headache for owners.
Everyone can agree on this today, but one should aspect that leaders in shipping check the market before new tonnage is being put in order. What is the meaning of building new ships and scrapping those built in 1986 (Geir / Grind), when they still are among the best in the trade.