As multinational retailers like Ikea and Walmart take a bold step into the world of shipping, with plans to charter their own tonnage in the face of severe space constraints and skyrocketing rates on liner services, it’s clearly not going to be a cakewalk.
The vessel chartering market is cresting a wave of sorts, and charterers foresee current volatility playing in their favour until 2024.
One of them is George Youroukos, chair of the London-based diversified fleet owner, Global Ship Lease.
Commenting on strong figures backed by growing demand in the charter industry, Youroukos said the availability of container vessels was heavily constrained.
Moreover, projections indicate that charter prices will continue to climb through the rest of the year, lasting well into 2023, with some in the industry believing that the surge with continue into 2024.
The prediction that non-availability of vessels, and concomitant prolonged charter periods, with rising rates in tandem of course, is here to stay for some time, has also been confirmed by Navios Maritime Partners.
According to the Greek dry cargo shipping platform, charter periods on average surged year-on-year (y-o-y) from 4.3 months in June 2020 to a staggering 30.7 months midway through this year’s second quarter (Q2).
Navios’s Q2 data, and its predictions for charter rates, are supported in the Harper Petersen Charter Rates Index.
The German index has reported that over the last 12 months, charter rates have more than quadrupled y-o-y.
