The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index extended gains on Thursday, helped by a rise in rates for capesize and panamax vessel segments.

The Baltic dry index, which tracks rates for ships ferrying dry bulk commodities and reflects rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels, rose 31 points, or 2.4%, to 1,348.

The Baltic capesize index gained 73 points, or 3.4%, to 2,210. The index on Wednesday snapped seven straight sessions of losses.

Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport cargoes of 170,000 tonnes to 180,000 tonnes, including iron ore and coal, rose $605 to $18,326.

The panamax index was up 37 points, or 3.2%, at 1,203, extending gains from the last session, when it broke a 10-day losing streak.

Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually carry coal or grain cargoes of about 60,000 tonnes to 70,000 tonnes, increased by $340 to $10,831.

However, the supramax index fell 12 points to 878.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Diptendu Lahiri in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)