[260621.EN.SEA] More Container Ships Receiving 'Astronomical' US$100,000/day Rates

 

MULTI-MONTH container-ship charters continue to be signed at jaw-dropping rates above US$100,000 per day, reports New York's FreightWaves.

The market is getting even tighter, pushing charter rates and durations higher still. Shipowner executives participating in the recently held Marine Money Week virtual conference discussed the historic strength of today's container-ship chartering market and how this unprecedented boom could end.

As previously reported by American Shipper, the 15-year-old, 5,060 TEU S Santiago was chartered at $135,000 per day for 45-90 days. Alphaliner subsequently reported that the 4,506-TEU CO OSAKA was chartered for two months at $125,000 per day.

Speaking on the Marine Money panel, Symeon Pariaros, CEO of Euroseas, pointed to "owners taking very short-duration charters at stratospheric levels." He cited a ship of the same size as the CO OSAKA getting $90,000 per day in recent weeks.

Constantin Baack, CEO of MPC Container Ships, revealed a new deal that sounds like a record in terms of dollars per day per TEU of ship capacity.

"The new normal for vessels of up to 5,000 TEU is a charter duration of two to four years. If you go shorter you get a significant premium. If you have the right vessel in the right place you can get astronomical rates in the short term," he said.

"We have just fixed [chartered] a 2,800-TEU vessel at above $100,000 per day for 65 to 80 days. We bought that ship, which was [built in] 2008, for $8 million. This charter alone pays $8 million. That gives you an idea of how interesting the market is at the moment if you catch the right deal.

"We have fixed about 30 vessels already this year and we have another 26 coming up [for charter renewal], so we know pretty well where the market stands," he said. "What we've seen is that over the last five weeks alone, it has really skyrocketed, both on periods and rates, and there's no end in sight. There's no reason to be pessimistic for the next couple of quarters.

Source : HKSG / Photo : VesselFinder.