Source: Financial Times, 16th May 2011

A moment's silence, please, for the Baltic Dry Index. For much of its 26 year-old history, the BDI - a compendium of freight rates for shipping iron ore, coal and grain - was considered a vital indicator, to be tracked as closely as gold, WTI crude or the US Ted Spread. Since the crisis it has steadily fallen out of favour, as the supply of ships of all sizes has consistently outstripped demand. This year's developments, however, may have fatally wounded its credibility.