Connecticut-based Eagle Bulk Shipping is seeing its best time-charter equivalent (TCE) rates in more than nine years, with nearly all of its operating days booked in the current quarter.

Eagle's bullish start to 2021 comes after it reported a surprise profit of $0.01 per share for the fourth quarter of 2020, against consensus analyst expectations of a $0.17 loss.

But even that earnings boost will take a back seat to what the Gary Vogel-led owner of supramax and ultramax bulkers is saying about its surprisingly strong first quarter, which is usually a period of weakness for dry bulk owners.