The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index was little changed on Friday but registered a third straight weekly gain on the back of strong gains in the Capesize vessel segment.
The main index fell one point, or 0.04 per cent, to 2,257 points.
The index lingered near its highest level since March 2024, which it touched in the previous session. It was up 10 per cent for the week.
The Capesize index gained 39 points, or one per cent, to 3,829, its highest level in over a year. It gained about 24 per cent for the week, marking its third consecutive weekly increase. Average daily earnings for Capesize vessels increased $327 to $31,756.
Iron ore futures locked in a fifth consecutive weekly gain, overcoming an early decline on Friday even as rising port inventories and weaker global steel production weighed on prices.
The Panamax index slipped 44 points, or 2.3 per cent, to 1,838, ending the week 4.2 per cent lower after four consecutive weeks of gains. Average daily earnings for Panamax vessels decreased by $400 to $16,540.
Among smaller vessels, the supramax index shed four points, or 0.3 per cent, to 1,294.
(Reporting by Anushree Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)