On the local fundamentals front, even though the Indian Rupee continues to trade dangerously close to the INR 72 mark against the US Dollar, the Indian market has seen some steady improvements in local steel plate prices for another week, as levels improved by about USD 6/Ton. Unfortunately, this was simply not enough to tempt Cash Buyers away from a flying Bangladeshi market, where levels jumped over the USD 400/Ton mark.
For now, the only possibilities for Alang Buyers remain vessels intended for HKC green recycling and any specialist / offshore units opening up in the region, as when Chattogram gets on a roll, they often jump significantly on price, not giving their competition much of an opportunity to compete.
It was therefore no surprise to see the geographically well suited, Karadeniz controlled tug, KARADENIZ POWERSHIP RAGIP BEY (1,470 LDT) as the only sale for the week, which was concluded at rather healthy USD 415/LT LDT. The country of build (i.e. USA) and the resultant powerful machinery on board meant that this has expectantly achieved an above market level.
Market Sales Reported
KARADENIZ POWERSHIP RAGIP BEY, Tug, 1,470 LDT, USD 415/LT LDT.