Asia tanker rates seen near 2-month lows
Rates for crude tankers on key Asian freight routes are expected to hover near two-month lows as ample tonnage offsets support from the International Energy Agency's (IEA) decision not to release more oil from its stockpiles, Reuters reports. For clean tankers, rates in the intra-Asia market are seen coming under pressure from a slowdown in Chinese diesel imports, shipbrokers said yesterday.
Rates on the benchmark Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) export route from the Middle East to Japan eased to W49.71 on Monday from W49.85 last week, shrugging off a decision by the IEA to not release further oil from its emergency reserves.
Rates came under pressure by IEA's decision last month to release nearly 60 million barrels from members' stockpiles, reducing the need to book freight for foreign oil.
Since the June 23 announcement, the market has traded in a tight range near two-month lows of W48.90 reached in mid-May.
'You would think the IEA's announcement not to release more oil would be good news for the market,' said a Singapore-based shipbroker. 'But traders are only paying attention to the growing number of ships floating offshore in the Middle East without any cargo.'
The Baltic Exchange's rate for 260,000-tonne crude tankers from West Africa to China fell to W47.50 from W47.67 last week. The market hit a 2011 low of W47.07 earlier this month and has traded in a tight range since late June.
Rates for 80,000-tonne aframax tankers from South-east Asia to East Coast Australia eased to W97.17 from W97.33 last week. The market has hovered near March's lows for the past seven weeks.
'The market is very slow and tonnage is building up,' said broker firm ICAP. 'We expect to see a lot of sitting and waiting from the owners' side to save on bunkers.'
Clean rates for Long Range (LR1) tankers on the benchmark TC5 Middle East to Japan route rose to a six-week high of W128.50 from W124.81 last week.
'A steady increase in rates last week has seen owners expressing ideas between W127.50 and W130. We will wait and see what this week brings,' ICAP said.
In the intra-Asia market, medium range (MR) tankers travelling from Singapore to Japan rose to W147.43 from W146.86 last week.
Rates were likely to come under pressure over the next week as China uses more of its domestic diesel supplies to prevent power shortages, instead of imports, traders said.
The Baltic Exchange's rate for South Korea to North America's West Coast slipped to US$32.07 a tonne from US$32.21 last week.
Rates on the benchmark Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) export route from the Middle East to Japan eased to W49.71 on Monday from W49.85 last week, shrugging off a decision by the IEA to not release further oil from its emergency reserves.
Rates came under pressure by IEA's decision last month to release nearly 60 million barrels from members' stockpiles, reducing the need to book freight for foreign oil.
Since the June 23 announcement, the market has traded in a tight range near two-month lows of W48.90 reached in mid-May.
'You would think the IEA's announcement not to release more oil would be good news for the market,' said a Singapore-based shipbroker. 'But traders are only paying attention to the growing number of ships floating offshore in the Middle East without any cargo.'
The Baltic Exchange's rate for 260,000-tonne crude tankers from West Africa to China fell to W47.50 from W47.67 last week. The market hit a 2011 low of W47.07 earlier this month and has traded in a tight range since late June.
Rates for 80,000-tonne aframax tankers from South-east Asia to East Coast Australia eased to W97.17 from W97.33 last week. The market has hovered near March's lows for the past seven weeks.
'The market is very slow and tonnage is building up,' said broker firm ICAP. 'We expect to see a lot of sitting and waiting from the owners' side to save on bunkers.'
Clean rates for Long Range (LR1) tankers on the benchmark TC5 Middle East to Japan route rose to a six-week high of W128.50 from W124.81 last week.
'A steady increase in rates last week has seen owners expressing ideas between W127.50 and W130. We will wait and see what this week brings,' ICAP said.
In the intra-Asia market, medium range (MR) tankers travelling from Singapore to Japan rose to W147.43 from W146.86 last week.
Rates were likely to come under pressure over the next week as China uses more of its domestic diesel supplies to prevent power shortages, instead of imports, traders said.
The Baltic Exchange's rate for South Korea to North America's West Coast slipped to US$32.07 a tonne from US$32.21 last week.