Rates to ship iron ore and other commodities were little changed today amid speculation falling steel prices in China will curb vessel demand.

The Baltic Dry Index slid 0.3 percent to 809 points, its 16th straight decline, according to the Baltic Exchange, a London-based publisher of freight rates. The biggest change was in rates for Panamaxes hauling about 75,000 metric tons, which dropped 1.3 percent to $6,329 a day, figures showed today.

Steel reinforcement-bar futures in Shanghai have fallen for four straight months to the lowest since September on the Shanghai Futures Exchange. The slumping prices may limit demand for iron ore, from which the alloy is made, Omar Nokta, a New York-based analyst at Global Hunter Securities LLC, said by e-mail today.

Daily earnings for ore-carrying Capesizes carrying about twice as much cargo as Panamaxes fell less than 0.1 percent to $5,171, according to the exchange. Supramax rates rose 0.7 percent to $9,104 a day, and Handysizes, the smallest ship type tracked by the index, fell 0.6 percent to $7,906, data show.