Since short-term dry bulk charter rates plunged 71.9 per cent in October, traders and shipowners have worried that traders might be caught out by the speed and severity of the fall.
Traders in forward freight agreements – derivatives based on short-term charter rates – could owe significant sums if they were betting on a rise in charter rates for ships carrying coal, iron ore and other commodities.
The sector's Baltic Dry Index of charter rates started the month at 3,025 points and closed on Friday at 851. The 80 per cent of trades made through clearing houses were being settled yesterday, while traders who bought cash-settled products through private transactions, known as over-the-counter trades, have until Friday to settle.