Project Description
Summary:
The April trade data set is interesting as the west locked down and the east were adjusting to a post Corona world. It’s remarkable that April dry cargo demand was 3% above April last year. Part of that story was iron ore was very low this time last year due to supply problems in Brazil. However, close to our prognosis the positives balance out negatives.
Coal trades have been strong all year in the Far East. China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan have imported consistently strong volumes but the interesting fallout was India. In April they imported 8 million tonnes of steam coal, half that of the previous month. As many of the city dwellers fled to the countryside the electricity consumption has fallen. This is important as India had the highest volume of coal imports in 2019. Coal trade in the rest of the world suffer too as volumes fall 16% compared to March.