The Baltic Exchange’s tanker segment covered several vessel classes this week, with mixed performance across regions and trade routes. The numbers reflect shifting freight dynamics, differing by ship size and geography.
Clean Tankers
LR2 vessels in the Middle East Gulf saw a modest decline: the TC1 (75 kt MEG → Japan) index dropped by 7.78 points to WS132.5, with corresponding TCE returns slipping below US$30,000/day to about US$29,600/day. The TC20 (90 kt MEG → UK-Continent) route held relatively flat, around US$3.8 million. Meanwhile the TC15 (80 kt Mediterranean → East) route closed the week up by US$56,000 at US$3.44 million.
LR1 freight in the MEG also fell: the TC5 (55 kt MEG → Japan) index fell 8.5 points to WS142, with a TCE slightly above US$21,500/day. The TC8 (65 kt MEG → UK-Continent) ended the week US$150,000 lower at US$2.88 million. On the UK-Continent route TC16 (60 kt ARA → West Africa) rose 4.3 points to WS120 amid tighter tonnage.
MR (Medium Range) tankers showed divergent trends: In the MEG, the TC17 (35 kt MEG → East Africa) index ticked up 5 points to WS215. On the UK-Continent, the TC2 (37 kt ARA → US-Atlantic Coast) remained around WS105, with Baltic TCEs barely above US$6,000/day. In the US-Gulf region, the TC14 (38 kt US-Gulf → UK-Continent) index fell 33 points to WS147, with Baltic TCE for the run dropping about 28% to US$6,700/day. The TC21 (38 kt US-Gulf → Caribbean) fell from US$607,000 to US$466,000, with the TCE dropping to around US$8,900/day. The MR Atlantic Triangulation Basket TCE declined from US$29,237/day to US$22,996/day.
Large Crude Tankers
VLCCs saw lower rates: On the Middle East Gulf → China 270,000 mt route (TD3C) the index dropped about 19 points to WS107, giving a round-trip TCE of approximately US$98,773/day. On the West Africa → China 260,000 mt route (TD15) the rate fell ~13 points to WS106.5, equating to a TCE of ~US$97,502/day. The US-Gulf → China (TD22) rate decreased by over US$430,000, with a TCE around US$89,000/day.
Suezmaxes held firmer: The Nigeria → UK-Continent 130,000 mt route (TD20) rose 12 points to WS159.72, translating to a daily TCE of ~US$80,782. The Guyana → UK-Continent 130,000 mt route (TD27) climbed 10 points to WS152.43 (~US$76,300/day). On the Middle East Gulf → Mediterranean 140,000 mt route (TD23) the index remained near WS110.
Aframax freight was mostly flat to slightly softer: The 80,000 mt Cross-UK Continent route (TD7) stayed at WS156 (~US$65,500/day). The 80,000 mt Cross-Mediterranean (TD19) dropped 4 points to WS198 (~US$62,200/day). In the Atlantic, the 70,000 mt East Coast Mexico/US-Gulf (TD26) and 70,000 mt Covenas/US-Gulf (TD9) both eased — TD26 fell 16 points to WS223 (~US$64,600/day), TD9 lost 12 points to WS220 (~US$58,600/day). The 70,000 mt US-Gulf → UK-Continent (TD25) remained at WS221 (~US$62,400/day). On the Vancouver exports, TD28 (80,000 mt Vancouver → China) fell over US$185,000 to US$3.4 million; TD29 (80,000 mt Vancouver → US-Pacific lightering) gained 12.5 points to WS237.5.
Did you subscribe to our daily Newsletter?
It’s Free — Click here to Subscribe!
Source: Baltic Exchange
