On the Capesize sector, the M/V POINSETTIA (174,667 dwt 2010 blt Namura) reported sold to Greek buyers at US$ 51m. On the Supramax sector, understand that Greek Buyers purchased M/V SANKO GLORY (52,980 dwt, 2005 blt Oshima S.B.) for US$ 27.5m and M/V LEPTA GALAXY (52,378 dwt 2002 blt Tsuneishi Zosen) has been sold for US$ 22m.  It has been a quieter week in the Tanker S+P market, however we do continue to see a consistent flow of sales within the modern Chemicals sector and have two more to report this week.  The stainless steel coated M/T VALERIE (19,819 dwt 2002 blt Qingshan) has been sold for US$ 14m while the stainless steel coated M/T CHEMSTAR MOON (19,949 dwt 2002 blt Usuki) has been sold for US$ 22m.  Three LNG carriers reported sold to Danish Buyers (Stena) namely CLEAR SKY (96,100 dwt 2011 blt Daewoo), CRYSTALSKY (96,100 dwt 2011 blt Daewoo) and BLUESKY (84.363 dwt 2006 blt Daewoo) for an enbloc price of  US$ 660m.

 NEWBUILDING 

Nor Shipping has taken place this week in Oslo and most of the worlds shipping powers, including both owners and yards, have gathered to discuss and promote their ideas for the future of the industry. With much of the markets attention drawn to this biennial event, the newbuilding market has been a little quieter, although there have been further reports of business being concluded in the Dry and Gas sectors.

One of the key themes to emerge from week has been the need for the market to embrace technological innovations. Both MAN B&W and Wartsila have recently announced newly developed engines running on alternate fuels, such as Gas or Bio fuels. These allow for significant reductions in emissions and in addition, are more economical than the standard fuel oil engines. Whilst concerns remain over the implementation of these engine types, due to current refueling constraints, their development at least allows for yards/owners to get a glimpse of the future and how designs may change going forward. These are not however the only developments - conventional fuel oil engines continue to evolve with newer more efficient models being developed. We are beginning to see these being incorporated into the latest designs, across most of the sectors and the interest in them is beginning to grow.

With regulations on emissions becoming stricter and bunkering costs continuing to rise, these new efficient designs will become increasingly important and could be expected to be a more prominent feature of future ordering.

In terms of reported business; In Dry, Golden Union Shipping have ordered 2 option 2 x 76,000dwt Panamax Bulk carriers At Rongsheng, China. These ships are thought to be delivering from End 2012 onwards and whilst no official price has been give, believe it will be in the region of USD32 Mill per vessel.