Freight rates to ship LPG on very large gas carriers (VLGCs) have risen by USD10/tonne since 27 August.
Rates on the benchmark Gulf-to-Far East route averaged USD86.75/tonne on 3 September, up from USD76.75/tonne on 27 August.
Based on bunker prices in Fujairah, the latest rate works out to daily earnings of USD85,692.
Brokers told IHS Maritime that a three-day holiday in China this week has resulted in more ships being fixed.
“More ships are being fixed early to cover Chinese requirements,” said an Indian broker.
Statoil and Shell each reportedly paid USD89/tonne to fix ships. Statoil booked Yuhsho and Shell fixed Corsair.
A drop in Saudi Aramco’s contract prices for September has also encouraged trade.
For propane, the contract price was set at USD315/tonne, down from USD365/tonne for August, while butane was priced at USD345/tonne, down from USD400/tonne.
“Importers are buying more cargoes and that has absorbed much of the available tonnage,” said a Singapore-based broker.
This post was sourced from IHS Maritime 360: View the original article here.
