Shipbreaking News

There seems to be positivity in the ship recycling market as the Baltic Index’s main Sea Freight Index fell for its ninth consecutive week this week, dropping to its lowest levels of the year, reports cash buyer GMS.“In essence, this decline especially affects older trading fleets, which in turn has seen all recycling markets register imports at their respective waterfronts this week, including a welcome return from Pakistan to the fray,” says GMS. “Fundamentals, though, continue…

Weak pricing, damp demand, and dithered sentiments characterized another lackluster week in the ship recycling industry on the Indian sub-continent, reports cash buyer GMS.Sales ground to a virtual halt this week with activity registering at some of the lowest levels witnessed for nearly a decade.As levels declined by over USD 100/LDT since the peaks of 2024, a majority of the marginal sales are reliably taking place below USD 500/LDT on nearly all vessels and into all markets.Bangladesh…

Cash buyer GMS reports an eerie calm has descended across tense global economies, including the destitute ship recycling sector.It’s been some time since a regular supply of a decent variety of vessels has been regularly available (likely the worst in a decade), says GMS. Levels have declined by over USD 100/LDT since the peaks of early 2024 and offerings continually retreat, firmly relegating all vessels below the commensurate USD 500/LDT mark.Geopolitical events have been to blame for much of the trauma across the ship recycling markets this year.

VesselsValue has released its Q4 2024 Market Outlook indicating a forecast period up to 2027 which suggests a mixed outlook across different vessel types.The company anticipates that orders for bulkers and tankers will gain momentum, while demand for containers and LNG/LPG vessels will decline. Despite the expected rise in bulker and tanker orders, the overall orderbook will likely shrink due to a surge in deliveries for container and gas vessels.Geopolitical tensions, such as the Houthi attacks in the Bab Al Mandeb Strait, are creating both risks and opportunities for shipping.

For the second running week and on the back of firming Chinese plate prices last week, ship recycling markets felt some positive moves as local plate prices remain on a positive to firm footing across the board, reports cash buyer GMS.However, increasing magnification into local markets proved to be a reality check, says GMS, due to the ongoing lack of tonnage that has been typical of this “dark year” in ship recycling.“After the U.S. Fed rate cut of 0.5% on interest rates a couple of weeks back and global currencies took a moment to adjust…

Cash buyer GMS has seen some positive movement in the sub-continent ship recycling market. “While we do not expect tonnage to come flowing into the markets anytime soon, nor do we expect ship recycling prices to go skywards within this time frame, the ship recycling industry did see some positive movements with improving indications breaking cover from India and even Bangladesh this week.”Several bulker and container ship sales were made as the market firmed.

Global ship recycling fundamentals remain shaky, reports cash buyer GMS, as Indian and Pakistani steel plate prices reported unexpected moves bought on by the 30% tariffs levied on a variety of goods being imported from China.In addition, the U.S. Dollar continues to “belly dance” around the various recycling nation currencies reporting the (comparatively) worst week for the Bangladeshi Taka as the interim government continues struggling to control the currency since May.“The…

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) and Oono Development Co., Ltd. agreed to jointly study the commercialization of ship recycling, in which ships and large offshore structures are dismantled in Japan and recycled as steel scrap and other materials. The memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on September 18 at NYK's head office. Ship dismantling work will be performed at Japan’s only dry dock which can handle large ocean-going vessels and is owned by Oono Development in Chita City, Aichi Prefecture.

“Between January and August 2024, the number of recycled ships has dropped 42% y/y, the second lowest level in 16 years. The market has seen high freight rates and strong demand, delaying the recycling of older ships. On the supply side, the fleet has continued to grow slowly, limiting fleet renewal,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.So far this year, only 45 ships have been recycled, adding up to 2.5 million deadweight tonnes (DWT) or 0.2% of the fleet. Recycling declined in all segments…

Cash buyer GMS cites the dangerous situations unfolding across the Middle East, Ukraine and South China Sea, when saying that politics, war, and ensuing global financial instability, means that ship recycling markets continue to endure profound challenges as the industry heads towards Q4 2024.“On the financial side, we witnessed a seesawing of fundamentals as on the one hand, likely on the back of news that the U.S. Feds are revising another reduction in interest rates, the U.S.

The ship recycling market has so far been subdued in September, as expected, reports cash buyer GMS.Macro factors affecting the market include the situation in the Middle East, Houthi attacks on passing vessels and tensions caused by the repositioning of navies in response to ISIS fighters targeting U.S. bases.“The start of September saw the industry still witness the inescapable decline that is India’s ship recycling sector today, one that continues to show no signs of it slowing since early June,” says GMS.

Action in the Middle East, including a repeat Houthi attack on container vessel Groton in the Red Sea, has increased volatility in the region, and the already slim pickings of tonnage for recycling only got worse through August, reports cash buyer GMS.“The desperate question unraveling in everyone’s mind is whether this is expected to be the case through 2024 / early 2025? Interestingly, even though we have seen sub-continent ship recycling nations take independent measures to curtail the devastating state of economic affairs…

Shipowners and cash buyers continue to struggle with the ongoing tonnage shortage as sub-continent ship recycling markets continue down their current trajectory, says cash buyer GMS.Negativity is permeating across the industry on the back of a short supply of vessels and global economies that remain shaky.

Freight sectors are performing unseasonably and unrelentingly well amidst all the unfolding crises that are still choking global ship recycling nations out of life-sustaining tonnage, reports cash buyer GMS.This includes potential attacks against Israel and brewing news of President Putin possibly being removed due to Ukraine’s successful invasion of “Mother Russia.”“Consequently, we continue to see world economies trudge silently up this unnecessary hill of economic instability that started with a massive backlog in global trade and drove inflation up since the onset of Covid-19…

Across the industry this week, the ongoing and disastrous state of affairs in both Bangladesh and Pakistan on opposite ends, coupled with the onset of the customarily slower summer / monsoon months, has increasingly descended the Indian sub-continent ship recycling markets into a tighter squeeze, reports cash buyer GMS.India too shuffles through the impact of its recent election results, and Turkey is in wait for any signs of tonnage coming their way.“A natural byproduct of such a depreciation has been the increasingly marginal number of units arriving sub-continent port positions every week…

Indian sub-continent ship recycling markets remain decidedly dicey as both currencies and local steel plate prices in India and Bangladesh declined even further this week, reports cash buyer GMS.“Vessel prices and demand take on a whole new meaning of industrywide suffering, especially with Turkey and Pakistani ship recycling markets still being remanded at the same resort over recent weeks.”The political situation in the Middle East will also continue to restrict the supply of vessels for the immediate future / likely until Q4…

“We see geopolitical events take center stage across all shipping sectors (trading and recycling) for yet another week,” reports cash buyer GMS. It is expected to continue through Q3 and likely well into Q4.GMS cites events such as the assassination of one of the founding members of Hezbollah in the heart of the Iranian capital city of Tehran, rockets fired into Israel and expected continued attacks on shipping by Houthis.Added to that is national unrest in Bangladesh where several…

Niels Rasmussen, BIMCO’s Chief Shipping Analyst, reports that ship supply is expected to grow on average 10.3% in 2024 and 5.3% in 2025. After increasing in 2024, sailing speeds are expected to reduce in 2025.Attacks on ships in the Red Sea have forced nearly all container ships to sail around the Cape of Good Hope, adding 10% to average sailing distances and ship demand.Re-routing via Cape of Good Hope could impact all of 2024. Ship demand increases an estimated 15.0% in 2024…

Vessel prices are already down by about USD 20 – USD 25 / LDT, reports cash buyer GMS, as further decline is expected in the first half of July as previously forecast.Shipowners and cash buyers are now chasing down a declining market, and recyclers are facing exacerbating economic challenges. Not only are local steel plate prices in shambles, but currencies are also taking tumbles at key destinations and have unexpectedly delivered a monsoon retreat for industry players who are looking to conclude business at the various ship recycling destinations…

The anticipated / ongoing seasonal slowdown in activity coupled with softening vessel prices has clearly started to characterize the year’s summer / monsoon mess across the Indian sub-continent ship recycling markets, reports cash buyer GMS.“However, the 2024 version not only includes the incessant rains and a holiday-time for yard workers, but also ongoing global descent via boots on the ground warfare and an economic tumult that has double downed and unsustainably maintained…

It has been another tentative time in the global ship recycling markets as overall this week, reports cash buyer GMS, as sale and purchase activity and local arrivals / deliveries reported minimal movements at the various waterfronts.Indian sub-continent ship recyclers are approaching the monsoon season with a ‘wait-&-watch’ mindset prior to committing afresh on tonnage, especially since virtually all sub-continent recyclers have taken in their respectable shares of tonnage over…

As Russia's war continues to rage in Ukraine and tensions hit a fever pitch in the Middle East, zooming out of the ship recycling markets, GMS sees geopolitical events taking centerstage across all shipping sectors (trading and recycling) for yet another week, with no end in sight. The mysterious bombing assassination of one of the founding members of Hezbollah in the heart of the Iranian capital city of Tehran early in the week sent shockwaves across the Arab world, followed by Iranian leaders vowing to avenge his death with a purported “new phase of war” in an already TNT loaded situation.

The Middle East and global ship recycling markets need a serious push on the pause button, says cash buyer GMS, as this week the world has seen:• increasing security bulletins surrounding an imminent Iranian / Hezbollah threat against Israel,• the U.S. repositioning two aircraft carrier / destroyer fleets off the Gulf of Oman & Eastern Mediterranean leaving the entire region on high alert,• PM Sheikh Hassina abruptly resign as Prime Minister of Bangladesh and fled to India in a government helicopter…