Activity in the S&P market was below 2022 levels, during the past year. In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Xclusiv said that “a total of 1,256 sales had taken place in the dry and tanker markets as of December 20th, representing a nearly 10% decline compared to the same period in 2022. More specifically, in the dry market, a total of 632 vessels changed hands within 2023, compared to 711 bulk carriers in 2022. The Handysize and Supramax sectors drove the dry S&P activity in 2023, with 149 and 142 sales respectively, followed by the Capesize sector with 98 sales. Although the number of transactions decreased for most sectors in 2023 compared to 2022, buying appetite for Capesize, Ultramax, and Newcastlemax vessels increased significantly.
The shipbroker said that “during 2023, Capesize and Newcastlemax sales stood at 98 and 19 respectively, with both nearly doubling their sales volume compared to the previous year. On the Ultramax sector, 70 sales were recorded in 2023, representing an almost 10% increase compared to 2022. There was also a slight increase in the sales of vessels aged 0-5 years old, with 48 sales in 2023 compared to 34 sales in 2022. Conversely, the sales of older vessels (over 21 years old) decreased significantly, with just 31 sales in 2023, representing a decline of nearly 67%. Similarly, to 2022, the age group with the most transactions in 2023 was the 11–15 year-old group with 286 sales, followed by the 6-10 age group with 149 sales”.
Xclusiv added that “on the tanker market, in 2023, the S&P activity eased from the 27-year high reached in 2022, with 618 sales recorded, representing a nearly 11% decline compared to the previous year. The MR2 and Aframax/LR2 vessels were the most sought-after, accounting for 269 transactions. Despite the slowdown in most segments, the MR2, Panamax/LR1, and VLCC segments bucked the trend, increasing by 11%, 17%, and 15%, respectively, year-on-year. While sales declined across almost all age groups, with drops of 25%, 28%, 11%, and 5%, respectively, for the 0-5, 6-10, 11-15, and 16–20 year-old groups, there was a significant increase (57%) for vessels aged 21+ years old. Greeks and Chinese were the primary buyers in 2023, acquiring 61 and 63 vessels, respectively. UAE and Turkish buyers followed with 53 and 37 sales. Greeks were also actively sellers, with 127 sales, with 68 of those vessels belonging to the 16-20 year-old group”.
Meanwhile, “having sold a significant portion of their older vessels, Greek shipowners were very active in the newbuilding market in 2023. They placed orders for 90 bulk carriers, representing around 20% of the total bulk carrier orders placed in 2023. This compares to just 40 bulk carriers they ordered in 2022. Their preference for 2023 was the Kamsarmax sector, with 55 orders, followed by the Ultramax sector, with 21 orders. Greek tanker orders also surged in 2023, with 123 orders placed, representing 34% of the total tanker orders placed in 2023. This is nearly three times more than the number of tanker orders they placed in 2022. Their primary focus was on the Aframax/LR2 sector, with 51 orders, followed by the Suezmax and Panamax/LR1 sectors, with 36 and 14 orders, respectively”, the shipbroker concluded.
