Baltic Dry Index Sinks Even Lower

The Baltic Dry Index, which measures dry bulk shipping rates on 40 routes across the world, sank 16 points to 684 points Tuesday. The index has plummeted 94% from its all-time record high of 11,793 points late May, and is now at it's lowest level since September 1986. The index has fallen 167 points, or 20% in the last month alone, which may help stimulate world demand for grains from importing nations.