Time charter rates for MPP vessels available immediately or in a few weeks’ time have surpassed the peak levels of 2008, the Hamburg-based broker Toepfer Transport said in its latest briefing. The MPP market is not showing any signs of cooling down. 

The time charter rate levels in all ship sizes keep on climbing. Forwarders and logistic companies have a hard time to accommodate their container, break bulk and project cargoes to fulfil their contractual obligations. Also wind turbine manufacturers struggle to find suitable tonnage – able to load heavy and oversized wind components – to perform their scheduled shipments without heavily straining their budgets.

Toepfer’s Multipurpose Shipping Index has continued to climb. According to the latest briefing, the TMI jumped to $15,673 for the month of October. This is an 11.29 percent jump compared to the previous month when the TMI was at $14,083. Compared to October last year, the increase of 136.92 percent is even more significant.

The sale and purchase market is also red hot and demand for MPP tonnage is huge with increased interest also from the container sector, Toepfer notes. Some sellers are inspired to increase their price tags along with higher demand to such extent that potential buyers hesitate to follow, so quick deals are no longer easy to be done.

The availability of MPP newbuilding slots remains scarce. As the container and bulk ship ordering spree continues, the window of opportunities for non-standard ship designs including MPP vessels gets even smaller