By V. Phani Kumar
Asian shipping stocks were mostly lower Tuesday, as an overnight
decline in an index for marine freight rates prompted profit-taking
after a string of recent advances.
But while the shipping sector might continue to see momentum in
demand during the short term, an increase in fleet size amid an
expected rise in deliveries is a major risk for the industry,
analysts said.
"The shipping industry is facing [a] huge fleet order book ...
[which] implies faster fleet expansion in the next two years," BNP
Paribas analyst Sarah Liu wrote in a report.
Liu estimates that even in the best-case scenario, where 30%
orders are canceled by shipping companies, and deliveries for
another 30% of orders are delayed, the global dry-bulk capacity
will still increase by 6.1% in 2009 and 10.2% in 2010.
Shares of STX Pan Ocean Co. (SPNOF) dropped 1.3%, and Hyundai
Merchant Marine Co. lost 1.4% in Seoul trading. China Cosco
Holdings Co. (CICOY) lost 1% in Hong Kong, and Neptune Orient Lines
(NPTOY) gave up 1.2% in Singapore, while Evergreen Marine Corp.
fell 0.5% in Taiwan.
Stocks were mixed in Tokyo, with Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha down
0.3%, and Nippon Yusen (NPNYY) flat, while Mistui O.S.K. Lines
(9104.TO) gained 1.9%.
In wider stock-market action, Japan's Nikkei was up 1.5% at
9,533.12, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 0.1% at 19,513.38,
recovering from early losses. China's Shanghai Composite dropped
0.5%, South Korea's Kospi rose 0.4%, and Singapore's Straits Times
Index was flat.
The broad decline in shipping stocks came after the industry
benchmark Baltic Dry Index dropped 0.9% to 3,511 Monday.