More than two-thirds (70%) of maritime leaders in Asia now believe the persistent volatility in oil prices represents a structural rather than cyclical change, according to new data released today by Sea Asia 2017.
It has been a rollercoaster few months for tanker markets with a two-year long boom tailing off over the summer, but some interesting new factors are coming into play over the medium term.
The bouyant tanker shipping market may be at risk of falling into a slump due mainly to an influx of vessel tonnage in the second half of 2016, and if OPEC decides to cut production to boost oil prices, according to DNB Markets.
Seatrade global does not often have occasion to talk about the landlocked country of Austria, but decisions being made in Vienna this week could alter the shipping landscape for years to come.
At last, there is some lift-off for the struggling crude tanker market. Earnings for VLCCs from the Gulf to Japan rose to $47,000 a day last week, and over $27,000 a day to the US Gulf.
