K-Line has is reported to have sold a 13-year-old handymax bulker to undisclosed Chinese interests.

Various shipbroker reports said the Japanese shipping giant has sold the 48,100-dwt Armeria (built 2003) for $4.2m.

The Oshima-built ship changed hands at a time when bulkers are experiencing an uptick in values after painful lows.

Last week, the Baltic Exchange’s Sale-and-Purchase Assessment for a 5-year-old supramax rose 4.3%