It came after a profit of $10.4m in the corresponding period of 2013.

Per Lange, chief executive of the company, said: “We positioned a large part of our fleet to America, expecting a strong grain season but the market turned out much weaker. Our expectation for the full year remains still positive though.”

In its report, the Copenhagen-based company said the extended Chinese slowdown in credit and construction and a reduction of transatlantic coal shipments also influenced its bottom line.