Rickmers Maritime Trust

[d.o.g.]

Container shipping capacity is expected to increase 11 per cent this year on the back of more new vessel deliveries.

However, experts said demand growth for container shipping is expected to remain at about 3 per cent this year.
...
But, shipowners are enticed with cheap financing from Chinese yards.

These Chinese shipbuilders only require as low as 1 per cent deposit for new building orders with a bulk of the payment to be made upon delivery of the vessels.

Supply growth +11%. Demand growth +3%. Doesn't sound like a recipe for freight rate increases to me. But then I'm no shipping expert.

1% downpayment for newbuilds? Wow, a better deal than property. If the market doesn't recover before the rest of the payment is due, just walk away. What a cheap call option. And what a horrible deal for shipyards. Heads you have to finish a ship on crappy terms, tails you're stuck with a half-built ship. The yard owners are clearly not acting entirely on economic considerations.