The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, which measures the cost of shipping goods worldwide, advanced for a second day on Thursday, rising about 5.6% to an over two-week high of 1,141 points. The capesize index, which tracks vessels typically transporting 150,000-tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, jumped nearly 15% to 1,189 points. Volumes remain consistent for mid-late September C5, East Australia, and Pacific business, contributing to a slight improvement in optimism. Also, a slight improvement in volumes on South Africa and India business, shipbroker Fearnleys noted. At the same time, the panamax index, which tracks ships that usually carry coal or grain cargoes of about 60,000 to 70,000 tonnes, added 7 points to 1,473 points; and the supramax index rose 20 points, or 1.9%, to 1,056 points. Historically, Baltic Exchange Dry Index reached an all time high of 11793 in May of 2008.