Now that we are well and truly into the New Year I would like to extend warmest wishes to all our members and their families for 2022. I would also like to wish our Chinese members and families a Happy Healthy and Prosperous Lunar New Year of the Tiger.  

The year ahead will have its challenges and certainly we will all be affected by the ongoing pandemic, but shipping is resilient and has weathered many storms before. We also know ships don’t navigate themselves and the human endeavour manning and operating the world’s lifelines are as important now as they have been from the beginning of seaborne trade. Ports and logistics have all been affected but all must show the world that they care about the seafarers and offer safe transit to those needing to be repatriated, not just grab the cargo and simply forget the people on board.

Predicting the future is risky business, particularly in the shipping markets. That’s why the Baltic Exchange provides indices and assessments which support risk management tools. 2021 was a record-breaking year for dry bulk freight derivatives trading. It was also a record-breaking year for container shipping rates as measured by the FBX index we administer. The starting up of container derivatives will help market participants manage their freight rate risk with the launch on 28 February of futures contracts by CME, settled against our assessments. 

The Baltic Exchange will continue to provide our members around the world with the support and services they need. This includes not only freight indices, S&P, recycling, forward and operational benchmarks, but also the growing escrow service, dispute resolution, education and professional development.  

Happy New Year! 

新年快乐 !

Denis Petropoulos, Chairman, the Baltic Exchange