Tanker rates for refined petroleum products on top export routes were broadly unchanged with a lack of firm trade set to keep earnings in their recent range.
Rates for medium-range tankers for 37,000 tonne cargoes from Rotterdam to New York route moved to W120.42, or $6,793 a day when translated into average earnings on Monday, from W120.83 or $7,213 a day on Friday and W123.75 or $8,084 a day last Monday.
“A flat week on the Continent as sufficient tonnage satisfies what little cargo enquiry there is,” broker E.A. Gibson said. Earnings hit their lowest levels in a year in November 2011 and have been volatile since then.
In April last year, rates reached their highest since 2008 on a jump in U.S. gasoline demand, helping reduce the number of tankers available for hire.
Analysts said less refinery capacity in the Atlantic Basin could boost long-haul demand for the wider products tanker sector in coming years, helped by fewer tankers being delivered.
Typical Long Range 2 or LR2, 75,000 tonne shipments on the Middle East Gulf to Japan route stood 90.32 at in the worldscale measure of freight rates on Monday, from W90.70 on Friday and W89.55 last Monday.
“For LRs, a lack of long-haul enquiry saw tonnage build last week, prompting a five point (rate) decline,” broker SSY said.
Long Range 1 tankers, carrying 55,000 tonne loads from the Middle East Gulf to Japan, were at W100.21 on Monday, from W100.00 on Friday and W102.08 last Monday.
“The market is flat and going nowhere fast,” broker Braemar Seascope said, referring to the LR1 sector.
In the Mediterranean, 30,000 tonne shipments ex-Algeria to southern Europe were at W139.72 on Monday versus W140.00 on Friday and W141.94 last Monday.
Source: Reuters
