In its Weekly Market Report & Outlook for the week ending 4 September 2026, Ultramax and Handysize markets firmed as tightening tonnage and stronger demand increasingly shifted leverage towards owners
Dry bulk markets entered September with renewed momentum, as the week ending September 4, 2026, brought stronger rates across key basins, supported by tightening tonnage availability and resilient cargo demand
Asia shipped a record 10.77 million TEU to Europe in the first half of 2026. Europe sent back just 3.02 million. The gap, not the record, reveals where the trade relationship is heading
COSCO’s realised rate jumped 12.3% in Q2. The market rose 19.5%. Then COSCO committed USD 2.688 billion to twelve ships. The recovery was real. So was the gap
The Capesize orderbook looks substantial. Yet Capesize capacity depends less on how many ships arrive than on how few voyages the new Atlantic trades allow each one to complete
ZIM’s Q2 rebound exposed an unusual problem: stronger earnings improved the standalone case just as regulatory resistance made Hapag-Lloyd’s $35 takeover harder to price
Eight carriers have reported. Spot freight rates nearly doubled in six months, and most carriers returned to quarterly profit. Then the market sold the shares of the biggest winners
Handysize and Ultramax markets remain fragmented across key basins, with charterers retaining leverage and owners testing freight floors, according to market data from the week that ended on 7 August 2026
Dry bulk markets strengthened in the week ending 7 August 2026, as Capesize and Kamsarmax gains lifted the BDI, while smaller vessel segments remained broadly steady
The week ending 31 July 2026 confirmed that Handysize and Ultramax markets are entering August under freight pressure, with geopolitical risks, seasonal cargo patterns and vessel positioning shaping commercial decisions across every major trading basin
