LNG

It has been another softer week in the LNG market across both sizes the Baltic report. Rates have continued to slide on both spot and period segments. Sentiment remains under pressure with the key routes losing value.

On the BLNG1 Australia–Japan route, 174k cbm vessels dropped another $1,100 to $32,200/day, while 160k cbm tonnage slipped a meagre $600 to $19,000/day.

In the Atlantic basin, the BLNG2 US Gulf–Continent route fell more sharply, with 174k cbm earnings losing $6,300 to $28,200/day and 160k vessels down $3,700 to $16,500/day, reflecting continued lack of demand and oversupply of available tonnage.

On the BLNG3 US Gulf–Japan route, 174k cbm ships fell $6,800 to $36,000/day, while 160k cbm units lost $4,400 to be assessed today at $19,700.

Period markets were also weaker. The six-month TC rate fell just over $4,000 to $38,300/day, with the one-year rate lost almost $2,500 to $41,500, and the three-year term was down less than $1,000 at $55,000, reflecting softer sentiment across the board.

LPG

On the BLPG1 Ras Tanura–Chiba route, rates appeared to be in free fall this week following some market reported fixtures. This saw the index also drop by $9.16 to $74.667 per metric tonne. TCE earnings fell $10,173 to $60,995/day as Middle East activity was overpowered by plentiful supply of available tonnage.

The BLPG2 Houston–Flushing route eased $5.00 to $76.5 per metric tonne, with TCE returns down $7,762 to $84,835/day. The BLPG3 Houston–Chiba route also lost value this week, mirroring the East market, with the index assessed down $9.5 to $139 per metric tonne. TCE earnings as a result came down by $7,515 to $66,642/day.

Source: Baltic Exchange