Third quarter iron ore shipments from Brazil to China, which hiked steel production by 10pc, largely supported the Capesize market, dry bulk owner GoodBulk said.
"The dry bulk market has benefited from the Chinese government's stimulus measures, among which there has been an emphasis to accelerate infrastructure projects, from increasing long-haul iron ore volumes from Brazilian miner Vale," the company said.
In the third quarter, Brazil's iron ore imports increased by 19.1mn metric tonnes (t) compared with the second quarter, according to the company.
Despite this, the company's third quarter time charter equivalent (TCE) rates fell year over year as the market suffered from decreased coal movements and Australian iron ore exports. GoodBulk's Capesize TCE rate fell by 23pc year over year to roughly $15,900/d, and its Panamax TCE rate fell by 47pc to roughly $6,400/d.
Going forward, Vale's iron ore exports and whether China loosens import restrictions on coal will shape dry bulk demand, GoodBulk said.
On the supply side, the dry bulk market will receive support from decelerating fleet growth in 2021, as the orderbook is at a 25-year low, the company said. The orderbook is just 6.3pc of the total fleet, according to Clarksons Research.
GoodBulk reported a third quarter loss of $1.2mn on revenues of $44.7mn, compared with a profit of $19.9mn on revenues of $61mn in the same period in 2019.
The company operates 22 Capesizes and one Panamax.
