The Dry Bulk shipping market in August 2025 continued navigating a year of record highs, subtle declines, and fleet optimization challenges. By analyzing AIS-derived vessel tracking data enriched with commercial datasets, we uncover key trends in commodity flows, fleet utilization, and regional demand shaping the industry today.
Fertilizer Imports Surge to Record Levels
Global fertilizer shipments reached nearly 120 million metric tons (MT) by July 2025, a 7.2% year-over-year increase. Brazil is the world’s largest importer, discharging over 24.5m MT—the highest ever recorded for this period—representing 20.9% of global seaborne fertilizer shipments. Key imported commodities include muriate of potash, ammonium sulphate, urea, and mono-ammonium phosphate.
India follows with 15.4m MT (+17.9% YoY), accounting for 13.1% of the global market. Its imports mainly comprise phosphate rock, urea, and di-ammonium phosphate. The United States places third so far in 2025, with 8.3m MT (-8.6% YoY), representing a 7% share.
Indonesia increased fertilizer imports by 14.7% YoY (around 5.5m MT), while Australia remained stable at 5.1m MT.
Iron Ore Shipping: Declines and Regional Shifts
Iron ore shipping in 2025 is shaped by a size effect, with larger vessels maintaining steady volumes while smaller bulk carriers face declining utilization. These patterns underscore the importance of fleet optimization in a shifting global iron ore market.
Global seaborne iron ore shipments exceeded 1 billion MT in August 2025, yet overall volumes are down 2.6% YoY. Most months from January to July recorded declines, with February dropping 13% YoY.
Top exporters:
• Australia: 568.7m MT (-1.6% YoY)
• Brazil: 235.8m MT (-2.6% YoY)
• India: 16.9m MT (-44.1% YoY)
Key importers:
• China: 761.6m MT (-3.6% YoY)
• Vietnam: +13.4% YoY
• Europe: +0.4% YoY
Fleet trends:
• Capesize vessels: 720m MT (-2.4% YoY)
• VLOCs: stable (+0.1% YoY)
• Supramax & Ultramax: -18.4% YoY
U.S. Grain Exports Lead Global Dry Bulk Activity
Strong Corn exports reinforce the U.S. position as a global leader in Dry Bulk grain shipping, highlighting the importance of tracking seasonal trends and commodity-specific flows.
The U.S. grain export market is accelerating, driven by Corn shipments, which reached 45m MT (+46.8% YoY) in the first seven months of 2025, representing 53.8% of all U.S. grain voyages.
During the same timeframe, 22.8m MT of Soybeans were shipped out of the US (+2.1% YoY), as well as 12.2m MT of Wheat (+5.2% YoY).
Panamax Fleet Dominates Coking Coal Transport
Panamax vessels (68K–85K DWT) carried 81.5m MT of Coking Coal in 2025, up 8.9% YoY, securing their place as the preferred fleet segment in this market.
The performance of other vessel segments in this market was as follows:
• Capesize (100K–220K DWT): 61.2m MT (-15.3% YoY)
• OverPanamax (85K–100K DWT): 30.8m MT (+2.2% YoY)
• Supramax & Ultramax: -40% and -26.7% YoY
August in Perspective
August data clearly shows why stakeholders must monitor AIS-derived trade data, fleet dynamics, and commodity-specific trends to optimize operations and capture growth opportunities in the evolving Dry Bulk market.
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