The Baltic Dry Index climbed 87 points to 2,680 on Wednesday, 21 October 2026, sources indicated, signalling a short-term upward move in the daily freight assessment produced by the Baltic Exchange.
The London-based Baltic Exchange compiles the index from rate assessments for dry bulk trades and the figure reported on 21 October was calculated from the exchange's daily survey of agents across the globe. The index covers prices for the shipment of staple dry commodities including coal, grain and iron ore.
A rise of 87 points represents a measured change in the composite that the Baltic Exchange calculates from individual route and vessel class assessments; the report did not publish sub-index levels or detailed route-by-route figures. Sources carried the item on 21 October 2026, citing the daily movement in the overall index.
How the index is formed
The Baltic Dry Index is compiled from a routine survey of shipbrokers and agents around the world, with the Baltic Exchange aggregating their reported chartering rates into a single composite number. That composite is intended to reflect the prevailing price to move dry bulk cargoes, with the exchange using assessments rather than transactional trade records in its daily published number.
The index's coverage spans the freight costs for cargoes commonly transported on dry bulk tonnage; reports specifically noted coal, grain and iron ore as representative cargoes included in the assessment. The 2,680 reading on 21 October therefore represents the Baltic Exchange's view, on that day, of the average charter rates across the trades it surveys.
What the reported change shows
The item published on 21 October gave the headline movement but did not include commentary on drivers behind the climb or the outlook for coming sessions. The report confined itself to the numerical change and the exchange's description of methodology, noting only the 87-point increase to the 2,680 level recorded that Wednesday.
Market participants and observers typically consult the Baltic Dry Index as a daily reference for freight cost trends in the dry bulk sector; The report provided the latest published composite number from the Baltic Exchange's London-based assessments. No additional comment, broker statements or transactional details were supplied in the item cited.
The Baltic Exchange remains the publisher of the widely referenced daily index number, and reports's account on 21 October 2026 relayed its latest published composite figure. The report provides a concise update for readers tracking dry bulk freight levels on that date.
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