Baltic Exchange enters the chemical tanker market

The Baltic Exchange has launched a new series of chemical and agricultural oil assessments.

The Baltic Chemical and Agricultural Oil Assessments (BCAA) will be produced on a weekly basis from this month to go alongside its existing dry bulk, tanker, gas, container and air freight data.

The BCAA will offer insights into a series of trade routes covering so-called easy-chemicals such as benzene, biofuels, and caustic soda, as well as vegetable oils. The indices are priced in US dollars per metric ton and basis 5,000 tonnes or 10,000 tonnes shipments and 40,000 tonnes for vegetable oils. 

“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, the CEO of the Baltic Exchange.