GERMANY: Distressed asset investors and hedge funds chasing ship buying opportunities could be bitterly disappointed even if freight and second-hand markets pick up over the coming years.
Double-digit returns per annum, as targeted by many private equity investors, are likely to remain an absolute exception, according to Germany's Ernst Russ Shipbroker.
Current second-hand price levels for bulk carriers appear to be based on a much less bullish but probably more realistic earnings expectation in the mid single-digit range, the dry cargo and container ship broker points out in its latest monthly Maritime Overview report.