Newbuild Export Orders Rise for Japan
JAPANESE shipbuilders received nine newbuilding export orders totalling 654,700 gt last month, up 68% year on year in tonnage terms from seven orders amounting to 389,500 gt in February 2016.
According to MANA, Reflecting continued signs of optimism in the dry bulk sector, two thirds of the new orders were for that market.
According to data from the Japan Ship Exporters’ Association, the new orders comprised three handymax and one panamax bulk carriers, two ore carriers, one aframax tanker and two chemical carriers. Orders in the year-ago period comprised one handysize, two handymax and three panamax bulk carriers and one very large crude carrier.
A return in Chinese import demand for coal from the middle of 2016 has been supporting dry bulk freight rates, which has prompted the market to place new orders. Another factor has been the relatively high prices of second-hand vessels, according to industry experts.