Baltic Dry Index

Diana Shipping Inc, the NYSE-listed shipping company of the Palios family, secured a fare four times higher than the previous one.

The ship's charter, which is expected to generate approximately US $ 5.04 million gross revenue for the minimum scheduled timeframe period, is indicative of the recent significant increase in the bulk cargo freight market.

The rise of the Baltic Dry Index on Monday reflects a growing consensus among analysts and investors that dry-bulk cargo shipping is on solid ground.

On Monday, the index was at 1.260 points - up 33 percent since the beginning of the year, and 84 percent over the last 12 months.

The prices of the most popular dry-bulk carriers, those in the Capesize and Panamax categories, have posted an increase of 20 percent within just one month, which according to shipbrokers Intermodal is an impressive hike. This concerns modern ships that traditionally concentrate the bulk of demand - particularly among Greek shipowners.