March 20 (Reuters) – The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index fell on Friday, posting its first weekly fall in six weeks, weighed by lower panamax and supramax vessel rates.
* The Baltic index, which tracks rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels that ferry dry bulk commodities, fell 5 points, or 0.8%, to 625.
* For the week, the index dipped 1%, its first weekly decline in six.
* The panamax index declined 43 points, or 5.1%, to 807, recording its 10th straight fall. The index slipped almost 20% during the week.
* Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually carry coal or grain cargoes of about 60,000 tonnes to 70,000 tonnes, decreased $393 to $7,259.
* The capesize index gained 45 points, to -121.
* Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 170,000-180,000 tonne cargoes including iron ore and coal, increased $224 to $4,067.
* The supramax index fell 7 points to 741. (Reporting by Nakul Iyer in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
