Scrapping ships and no new builds is the fastest road to recovery

According to BIMCO President, Philippe Louis-Dreyfus the dry bulk market could become profitable again in 2019 – but only if a series of extremely tough and sustained measures are taken by shipowners.

BIMCO has developed a new analysis model to show the actions necessary for shipping markets to recover. Using this model, BIMCO has developed a “zero supply side growth” scenario for recovery of the dry bulk market. This scenario requires shipowners to neutralise the delivery of new ships every year by scrapping an equal amount of capacity from the existing fleet.

Commenting on the new analysis Mr Louis-Dreyfus described the dry bulk market as being in a “terrible” condition. He said: “We cannot expect to be helped by growth in demand, the recovery of the market is wholly and exclusively in the hands of us, the shipowners.”

“The medicine is not going to be easy to take, zero supply growth has been achieved only three times in recent history, during the 1980s and 1990s. The task ahead of us is huge and must be sustained year after year.”

“We need to demolish an enormous number of ships and refrain from building new ships.”

BIMCO President Philippe Louis-Dreyfus also insists that scrapping older vessels is not only a good way forward to a better market.

Edited from press release by Angharad Lock

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/europe-cis/01062016/bimco-scrapping-ships-and-no-new-builds-is-the-fastest-road-to-recovery-for-the-dry-bulk-market-96/