Taiwanese bulk carrier Wisdom Marine expects to make more profit this year, since its new ships have secured 50% of gross margin and the disposal of old ships will bring in extra revenue, the company said today.
Although the bulk shipping market remains sluggish, not all carriers will fare the same, said James Lan, chairman of Wisdom Marine. He pointed out that many investors believe all bulk carriers will do better or worse in accordance with the changes of the Baltic Dry Index, “however, carriers’ performance varies as they have different types of new ships”.
Wisdom Marine plans to take delivery of 16 new ships this year, including six Panamaxes, three Supermaxes, and three Handysizes. Three of the six Panamaxes have already been resold to European buyers, each of which is expected to bring more than USD5 million to the company.
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The carrier’s other new ships have secured long-term chartering contracts with ‘K’ Line, Glencore, WBA, and Lauritzen, and the 50% gross margin is better than last year.
The carrier expected the bulk shipping market to bottom up in 2014, and many carriers suffered a lot because of wrong judgement, which made the market much messier than before. Therefore, traders and shipping companies pay more attention to the credit and stability of their partners, Lan noted. In spite of the depressed market, half of Wisdom Marine’s top-10 clients still posted a profit last year.
Wisdom Marine operates a fleet of 104 vessels. In order to keep a young fleet, the carrier has disposed seven old ships last year, and plans to dispose 10 in 2015. It targets to maintain a fleet of 100-120 ships.
This post was sourced from IHS Maritime 360: View the original article here.
