Drewry: Multipurpose Time Charter Index Expected to Decline Further in September

The Drewry Multipurpose Time Charter Index tracks one-year period charter rates across a basket of vessel types and sizes and forecasts the market movement over the coming month. The vessel types include breakbulk and project cargo ships.

The Drewry Multipurpose Time Charter Index is above our forecasted value for August of $8,521 pd, and it is now at $8,583 pd. The decline is less than we expected for this month, but it is in line with our overall expected trend as this gradual rate of decline continues. The pressure on MPVs remains from other sectors as they compete for breakbulk cargoes.

Drewry’s latest assessment (including September forecast)
The seasonal downturn in utilisation is coming to an end and the continued support by the Project market means rates are expected to have less of a decline in September. Drewry’s Multipurpose Time Charter Index is expected to decline further by 0.8% in September, reaching $8,511pd. This would result in a decline of 15.4% since September 2022.
Source: Drewry