A few days ago， India will have a major impact on ship valuations. The Mumbai-based Economic Times reported that the Indian government will announce an age limit for ships calling at the country’s ports. How will this decision change maritime trade, and how will it affect freight rates and supply and demand?

Under the new rules, bulk carriers, tankers or general cargo ships aged 25 years and above are not allowed to call at Indian ports. The limit is set at 30 years for gas carriers, container ships, harbor tugs (tows operating in ports), and offshore vessels. The age of the ship will be counted from the “date of construction” mentioned in the certificate of registration. Locally flagged ships will be deregistered when they reach the newly imposed age limit. Additionally, shipowners will not be able to register locally any second-hand acquired ships that are 20 years or older. According to the “Economic Times” report, the move aims to improve the safety of ships and meet the global ship discharge regulations to improve the level of environmental protection and protect the marine environment.

According to MarineTraffic data, in 2022, 3,802 oil tankers, bulk carriers, container ships, and natural gas carriers built before 1998 have arrived in India to call at the country’s ports.

According to Xclusiv Shipbrokers, India accounts for 17% of world seaborne iron ore trade, 19% of world seaborne coal trade and 2% of world seaborne grain trade; India accounts for 12% of world seaborne crude oil trade and world seaborne petroleum products 7% of trade.

Considering that about 7% of bulk carriers and almost 4% of tankers are over 21 years old, how this decision by the Indian government will change maritime trade and how it will affect vessel freight rates, Xclusiv Shipbrokers said in its latest weekly report. And supply and demand, remains to be seen. In the container sector, only a small number of ships are close to or over 30 years old. According to statistics, only 3% of container ships are over 29 years old. Considering the large number of new shipbuilding orders that have already begun to be delivered, the container market may not be affected.

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