THE Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying industrial commodities, fell to a record low late Thursday on worries over vessel demand from top importer China.

    The overall index, which gauges the cost of shipping dry bulk cargoes including iron ore, cement, grain, coal and fertilizer, fell 22 points to 445 points. The near 5 percent drop took the index to its lowest since records began in January 1985.

    The dry bulk shipping downturn that began in 2008 after the onset of the financial crisis has worsened significantly in recent months as demand for iron ore and coal has declined in the face of slower economic growth in China.

    Analysts also see vessel lay-ups and a higher number of ships dismantled this year if the market does not improve.

    “The dry bulk sector will probably have to reduce the new building orderbook and increase ship recycling in 2016 to restore the balance,” Moore Stephens shipping partner Richard Greiner said in a note Wednesday.

    Rising iron ore supplies from top miners are adding to a glut of the steelmaking raw material, weighing on prices.

    (SD-Agencies)