In addition, news of a ‘mini’ budget with a potentially negative outcome for Gadani’s ship recycling sector has started filtering through from Pakistan, GMS reported.
Moreover, both Bangladesh and Pakistan (since Gadani reopened for tankers towards the end of April) remain full with several large LDT Aframax/Suezmax/VLCCs that have been beached here during the past several months and this has led to a muted degree of demand over the monsoon season.
Also cutting permission has only recently been issued for the first batch of tankers delivered in Pakistan, while all of the wet units delivered into the country have sat idly at local yards ever since, waiting for re-inspections and the issuance of gas free certificates from the relevant departments.
Therefore, it is expected to take a few months before some of this inventory starts to shift from local yards and demand returns to previous levels, despite a minimal number of arrivals and beachings through August and an empty port report at Gadani for the third week running.
With the Indian Rupee trading at over Rs 72 against the US Dollar (unprecedented and historical lows), it was a curiously tentative week with many end buyers not expecting market improvements to the same extent that some bullish cash buyers were pricing some of their offers/acquisitions that resulted in another VLCC and a Capesize bulker being fixed at some extremely speculative numbers last week.
As has been the case for several weeks, Turkey and especially China still remain non-players in the recycling industry.
Brokers reported that the VLCC in question was the 1996-built ‘Ramblah’ said to have been sold to Bangladesh interests for $438.5 per ldt on the basis of ‘as is’ Jeddah and with 1,600 tonnes of bunkers ROB.
Another sale was that of the 2005-built Aframax ‘CV Stealth’ which was reported sold to undisclosed interests for $193 per ldt on the basis of ‘as is’ Trinidad.
She was the subject of a legal dispute in Venezuela, which commenced in 2014 and was reported to be in a bad condition.