Ship recyclers on the
Indian subcontinent are becoming increasingly discouraged from buying ships as
the unrelenting influx of cheap Chinese steel pushed scrap prices down again
last week.
Bulkers are now priced
at USD 350 to USD 370 per ldt and tankers at USD 380 to USD 400 per ldt.
Dubai based cash buyer
Global Marketing Systems said that end users cannot shift inventory from their
yards at present and are limiting their output to the steel mills, as the
Chinese steel is being sold at such a discount locally (despite its inferior
quality), that it is close to halting local ship recycling activity altogether.
The world's largest cash
buyer noted that many players in the industry have started to feel
'comfortable' with the price below USD 400 per ldt on bulkers and tankers/containers,
but were shocked when the prices plunged by another USD 50 per ldt within one
week. However, the unrelenting drop in the Baltic Dry Index has compelled some
Capesize owners to continue disposing older tonnage.
Last week, Eastern
Pacific sold its 1996 built Capesize bulker Fernie for USD 6,715,500 or USD 407
per ldt for demolition in Bangladesh. Other than that, no sales were reported
in India and Pakistan last week.
GMS remarked that the
price drop has fallen beyond the Indian ship recycling market fundamentals and
is showing no signs of slowing down.
According to GMS, some
industry insiders deemed the recent fall to be 'somewhat artificial' and price
drop has plummeted too fast and too sharp to be true.
End buyers have
withdrawn offers on working vessels (leaving many cash buyers terribly exposed)
and those vessels committed at higher prices some time ago are faced with
torturous renegotiations upon arrival at the shorefront.
Source: steel guru. 11 February
2015
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