The secondhand bulker market has seen another strong week with prices firming up for ultramax and supramax vessels, while the tanker sale and purchase market still faces difficulties in attracting buyer’s interest thanks to the current volatile and rather gloomy outlook.
“This past week we have witnessed a greater volume of dry bulk sales compared to other segments, with a stronger preference for older vintage units over modern ones. We expect prices for modern secondhand units to hold their values due in part to most owners not being sellers in this firming freight market, while owners of recently acquired tonnage looking to be more likely candidates as sellers, especially if they purchased these assets back in 2016,” Allied Shipbroking said in its latest weekly report.
Intermodal and Fearnleys have reported that Greek owner Zela Shipping purchased the 2011-built kamsarmax Archigetis from Archipelago Shipping, the Piraeus-based management company of John C Hadjipateras & Sons, for $20m. After the sale of the 81,076 dwt vessel, Archipelago is left marooned with no vessels left in its fleet.
Allied Shipbrokers and Clarkson both reported a deal in which Fujian-based Chinese shipping firm Pingtan Shunrun has become the new owner of 2012-built 41,000 dwt handymax bulker Qin Feng 19 after acquiring the vessel via auction for $2.5m. The vessel was owned by Chinese company Zhejiang Qinfeng Shipping, which went into a financial crisis two years ago and most of the company’s fleet has been sold by creditor banks.
“On the tanker front we expect the lack of sales to be partially due to the deteriorating freight market. It’s very likely that most owners are reluctant to come down to buyer’s levels and thus we have not seen many transactions concluded. We expect the secondhand tanker market to continue to falter for the next few months, until the oil market starts to show a more bullish face which should rekindle the freight market,” Allied Shipbrokers said.
Braemar ACM Shipbroking expects the tanker fleet growth is likely to slow down next year and crude exports from the Middle East in 2018 are likely to end up flat at 2017 levels, hardly inspiring confidence for any prospective buyer.
According to Allied Shipbrokers, Lion Shipbrokers and Andreas J. Zachariassen, Swedish owner Kiltank Shipping acquired the 2008-built 7,701 dwt tanker Besiktas Halland from Turkish company Besiktas Likid Tasimacilik for a price of $9m.
Advanced Shipping & Trading also reported an old tanker sale deal in which Greek owner Aegean Shipping has taken the 1999-built aframax tanker Althea from compatriot company Chandris at an undisclosed price. The vessel has just completed a two-year charter contract with Shell.
Secondhand containership sales remain limited this week. Advanced Shipping & Trading and Clarkson have identified Chinese company Goto Shipping as the buyer of 698 teu feeder vessel JRS Carina. The company acquired the 2007-built vessel from Germany’s Rudolph Schoening for $3.3m. Qingdao-based Goto Shipping mainly operates feeder business between China and Japan.
Lastly, Lion Shipbrokers reported that Japan’s Doun Kisen sold the 2007-built sub-panamax containership Chittagong to South Korea’s Hyundai Ocean Service, a subsidiary of Hyundai Merchant Marine, for $10.9m.
