Both the charter and S&P markets are responding: sentiment in the MPP shipping sector is improving.
“In line with the favourable weather conditions in Europe, sentiment in the MPP sector is also improving, with the outlook for the next 18 to 24 months looking positive,” states the new report from the Hamburg-based broker Toepfer Transport.
According to the report, shipping companies with a more “asset-light” structure are actively securing tonnage for the coming months. In doing so, they are competing with more capital-intensive shipping companies, which are seeking to bring greater flexibility to their fleet portfolios by utilising the charter market.
“There is keen interest from potential buyers in every vessel set to become available over the next 12 months, with buyers willing to pay attractive prices – particularly for vessels younger than 15 years,” write the analysts at Toepfer Transport. This interest is evident in both the time charter and S&P markets.
The TMI index, published regularly by the Hamburg-based firm, currently stands at $12,903, which is 1.74% higher than the previous year’s figure. It reflects time charter rates for the industry’s “workhorses”: the F-class multi-purpose carriers with 12,500 dwt and 240 t crane capacity. The outlook for medium-term charter expectations is also positive at present. The TMI-P6 and TMI-P12 indices, which reflect expectations for the coming six and twelve months respectively, show increases of 1.73% and 3.16%.
Toepfer Transport has also recently started publishing an index for 12,500-tonne vessels with a 500-tonne crane capacity – this type of vessel can now easily be described as the industry’s ‘new workhorse’. Current value: $17,596, which is slightly up by 0.44% on the previous month.
This trend is also evident in the buying and selling market. According to the Hamburg-based analysts, a Type F vessel less than 20 years old – which was sold to its current owners in 2018 for under $7 million – can now fetch a price of just under $10 million on the S&P market, even though it is now eight years older. “The recent rise in order intake in larger vessel segments, combined with rising costs and longer delivery times for equipment components, has led to a steady increase in newbuild prices,” the report states.
A new 9,000-tonne vessel currently costs $21.50 million (up from $21 million the previous month), $31.50 million for a 12,500-tonne vessel (up from $30.75 million) and $51.25 million for a 30,000-tonne vessel ($50.75 million). On the second-hand market, a ten-year-old 9,000-tonne vessel costs $10 million ($9.75 million). For 12,500-tonne vessels, the price remains at $14.75 million ($14.50 million), whilst for the larger vessels in the 30,000-dwt class, the price remains at $23 million.
