2012 was yet another year of speculation, anticipation, pessimism and more speculation in the shipping markets. According to the latest weekly report from shipbroker Intermodal, "if 2011 was a year of aggression with the majority of the shipping world treating it as a short slow down before the next bonanza, 2012 was a major slap in the face and a party killer making most people (there is a reason that I say most) realize the rates are on a downhill with no breaks. 3 words in 2012 in my humble opinion were the most popular in the shipping world. “Distressed,” “ECO” and “Finance”, wrote Intermoda's analyst, Mr. Timos Papadimitriou.
He noted that "starting with “Distressed,” the market has been looking for the so called “fire sales” of modern assets since 2010 to no avail, at least not to the extent many would like. But why is that? Charterers have being defaulting, owners have being defaulting, and many yards are for sure to default. But the really low prices have yet to be witnessed. We have started to slowly but surely see assets being marketed cheap in the container sector, but these 90’s units are hardly of interest any more. Will dry bulkers and tankers provide similar opportunities for modern distressed assets? It’s doubtful. Units built after 2007 had been contracted at much higher levels compared to today’s NB prices and keep in mind that the finance that these vessels operate on, is unlikely to have been completely repaid yet. As such, the banks will be reluctant to sacrifice these vessels to the market just yet. It’s more likely that we will continue seeing the “inviting offers” dance followed by the “withdrawn from the market” maneuver and finishing strong with either a private sale or a second dance of an “inviting offers.” Time will tell" he stressed.
Intermodal's analyst went on to explain what 2012 meant in terms of the crowd favorite word of "Eco". He mentioned that "ECO tankers, ECO Bulkers, ECO containers and so on. There so many different opinions, predictions and questions. Will the new vessels render the older ones obsolete? Will the ECOs see the anticipated premiums? How will they perform under bad weather? Can the older vessels be cheaply retrofitted to run as efficiently? And what if oil prices drop? The last question cracks me up every time! In my very humble opinion it will come down to the owner/operator. Undeniably, what’s more important than the vessel itself, is to know how to manage/operate a vessel. It’s “back to basics,” and the charterers are well aware of that. Yes the ECO vessels will attract curiosity but their value might not only be in the FOC they boast but also in other features they will be fitted with that will allow them to comply with new regulations and laws. Again time will tell" he said.
Finally he stated that "last but not least we have reached our final point, “Finance.” These days finance resembles “Nessie” the Loch Ness Monster. There is something out there but what exactly is it? that we don’t know yet. European banks are silent or playing dead (emphasis on “playing”) making the credit thirsty parties look to China for Nessie but with no consistency in the sightings. Truth to be told, there is some finance from China as well as other sources like the recently reported Bumi deal which was backed up by Indian money. So finance might not be easily found or even acquired, but taking the right steps and most importantly having a healthy financial past will lead you to the end of the rainbow. Once again time will tell" Papadimitriou said.
He concluded his argument by noting that "the shipping market has always been a steady supplier of surprises and curve balls. When all things point to one direction, something has always happened that defied all odds and changed the market’s course. Yes there are still A LOT of bulk carriers to be delivered, yes the global economic environment does not favor end products that are shipped with containers and yes the tanker market is struggling to find its footing but maybe the New Year will lead to new opportunities emerging. Time will indeed tell".