Clean Tankers — LR2 & LR1 See Gains, MR Mixed
This week, LR2 tankers in the Middle East Gulf (MEG) jumped in activity. The TC1 75kt MEG→Japan index rose 29 points to just under WS 185. As a result, the round-trip TCE climbed to just over US$50,000/day. Meanwhile, a westbound voyage on TC20 (90kt MEG→UK-Continent) improved, with freight increasing from US$4.18 million to about US$4.52 million.
On TC15 (80kt Mediterranean→East), the index improved by US$150,000 to US$3.8 million.
LR1s also strengthened. The TC5 55kt MEG→Japan index surged from WS 158 to WS 188. A west-bound TC8 (65kt MEG→UK-Continent) voyage ended the week around US$3.49 million, up by US$314,000. On the ARA/West-Africa route (TC16 60kt), the index ticked up modestly to WS 135.
However, MR tankers experienced a more mixed week. In the MEG, TC17 35kt (MEG→East Africa) peaked mid-week at WS 260, but later eased to WS 249. In the UK-Continent market, TC2 37kt (ARA→US Atlantic Coast) touched WS 180 before sliding back to WS 171. Despite the dip, round-trip TCE held just above US$21,000/day.
In the US Gulf, MR freight softened as the week progressed into the short trading window before the U.S. Thanksgiving break. The TC14 38kt US Gulf→UK-Continent voyage dropped from WS 199 to WS 182, reducing round-trip TCE from about US$24,500/day to US$22,100/day. The US Gulf→Caribbean TC21 route also declined from US$864,000 to US$803,000. By mid-week close, the MR Atlantic Triangulation Basket TCE fell from US$41,600/day to US$38,900/day.
Handymax Clean Segment Holds Steady
In the Mediterranean, Handymax 30 kt cross-Med index hovered between WS 230–250. Corresponding Baltic TCE for round-trip voyages ranged between US$33,900–US$41,900/day. On the UK-Continent cross route (TC23 30 kt), the index rose 11 points to WS 230, equating to about US$35,800/day round trip.
Crude Tankers — VLCC Slight Softening; Suezmax & Aframax Mixed
In the VLCC segment, rates softened slightly in both the Middle East and West Africa. The 270,000 mt Middle East Gulf→China (TD3C) dropped two points to WS 136.06, giving a standard Baltic-description VLCC a daily round-trip TCE around US$138,266/day.
In the Atlantic, the 260,000 mt West Africa→China (TD15) lost five points to WS 119.25, with a round-trip TCE near US$117,300/day. However, US Gulf→China (TD22) improved — the rate rose by US$125,000 to finish at US$13.9 million, yielding a daily TCE of about US$99,395.
Suezmaxes saw modest softening. On the 130,000 mt Nigeria→UK-Continent (TD20) route, the rate fell three points to WS 150.56 (≈ US$77,391/day). The Guyana→UK-Continent 130,000 mt route (TD27) dropped eight points to WS 144.69 (≈ US$72,500/day). The 135,000 mt CPC→Augusta (TD6) route lost two points to WS 182.72 (≈ US$107,800/day). Middle East-to-Mediterranean (via Suez, TD23) also dipped two points to WS 111.53.
In the Aframax segment, the North Sea Cross-UK Continent 80,000 mt route (TD7) climbed four points to WS 160 (≈ US$70,300/day). In the Mediterranean (Ceyhan→Lavera, TD19 80,000 mt), rates edged up two points to WS 187 (≈ US$57,900/day). Across the Atlantic, the short U.S. Gulf/East Mexico routes softened due to holiday-driven uncertainty: 70,000 mt East Coast Mexico–US Gulf (TD26) eased five points to WS 205 (≈ US$57,800/day), and 70,000 mt Covenas–US Gulf (TD9) dipped four points to WS 202 (≈ US$52,300/day). The US Gulf→UK Continent 70,000 mt trans-Atlantic run (TD25) remained steady at WS 211.39 (≈ US$59,700/day). For exports from Vancouver, the 80,000 mt crude route to China (TD28) lost US$62,500, while the Pacific lightening route (TD29) softened four points to WS 251.25.
What It Means: Cautious Optimism With Regional Variation
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Clean tankers — especially LR2 and LR1 — saw firm gains this week, driven by strong MEG demand and active voyages to Asia and Europe.
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MR tonnage remained under pressure, particularly in the US-Gulf/UK-Continent and Atlantic trades, reflecting fragility ahead of the holiday break.
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Handymax rates held reasonably steady, offering moderate returns for the segment.
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Crude tankers showed mixed signals: VLCCs weakened slightly overall, but some US-Gulf export paths offered robust returns. Suezmax and Aframax markets saw regional friction and holiday-related softness.
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Source: Baltic Exchange
