The Baltic Exchange's dry bulk freight index fell for a fourth consecutive session on Thursday, dropping about 3.2% to 2,844 points, its lowest level since August 3. The benchmark tracks rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities and is closely watched as an indicator of shipping costs for raw materials such as iron ore, coal and grain. The decline was led again by larger vessel segments, with the capesize index down 5.2% to 4,469 points and the panamax index falling 1.7% to 2,262 points for a second straight session of losses. By contrast, the supramax index, which tracks smaller bulk carriers, rose 0.6% to 1,613 points.