The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index, which factors in the average daily earnings of capesize, panamax, supramax and handysize dry bulk transport vessels, fell on Thursday, as capesize rates slid more than 11 percent. * The overall index, which gauges the cost of shipping commodities such as iron ore, cement, grain, coal and fertilizer, dropped 120 points, or 6.57 percent, to 1,706 points. * The Baltic’s capesize index slid 319 points to 2,500. * Average daily earnings for capesizes, which usually transport 150,000 tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, were down $3,936 at $24,058. * The Baltic’s panamax index slipped 27 points, or 1.61 percent, to 1,645 points. * Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually transport 60,000 to 70,000 tonne cargoes of coal or grain, were down $211 at $13,112. (Reporting by Shrutee Sarkar in Bangalore; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)