The Baltic Exchange has announced the launch of its Baltic Chemical and Agricultural Oil Assessments (BCAA), a new series of weekly freight assessments for the chemical and agricultural oil shipping sectors, starting in February 2025. The BCAA aims to address the increasing demand for freight data and benchmarks in these sectors.
The indices will cover several trade routes for "easy-chemicals" like benzene, biofuels, caustic soda, and vegetable oils, priced in USD per metric ton for 5,000 mt, 10,000 mt (and 40,000 mt for vegetable oils) shipments. The Baltic Exchange noted the specialized handling requirements of chemical tankers, which carry diverse cargoes.
Covered trade routes include: EC11 (Northwest Europe to US Gulf), EC22 (Middle East Gulf to West Coast India), EC23 (Middle East Gulf to China), EC34 (US Gulf to Far East), EC35 (US Gulf to Northwest Europe), EC36 (US Gulf to Brazil), EC43 (Singapore to China), EC52 (Korea to West Coast India), EC57 (Korea to Singapore), PO45 (Singapore Straits to Northwest Europe), and VG62 (EC South America to West Coast India).
“Unlike traditional freight indices, chemical tanker operations are highly complex, involving multiple unrelated cargoes with very specific but diverse stowage and handling requirements. However, the chartering market has now become sufficiently mature for us to develop a reference price for these key trade lanes,” said Mark Jackson, CEO of Baltic Exchange.
The BCAA follows other recent Baltic Exchange initiatives, including the Baltic Know-Your-Customer (KYC) Platform and the FuelEU Maritime Calculator.