Tanker market close to record levels in the freight sector

The tanker marketplace remained astatine elevated levels successful April, with freight rates holding steadily adjacent to historical highs.

At the aforesaid time, the orderbook stands astatine astir 20% of the progressive fleet, while shipbuilding and second-hand vessel prices are besides trading astatine historically precocious levels. According to Intermodal data, VLCC spot rates averaged 192,766 dollars per day, down 25.4% compared to the erstwhile month.

Despite the correction, these levels stay importantly higher than the ten-year mean of 36,689 dollars per day.

One-year clip charter rates for VLCCs closed astatine 123,250 dollars per day, down 2.6% month-on-month, while three-year charters declined by 10.2% to 72,750 per day. This trend indicates that the marketplace continues to terms successful affirmative medium-term prospects for crude tankers, albeit with much tempered optimism compared to the erstwhile highest period.

In the Suezmax segment, the spot marketplace besides recorded a notable decline. The mean clip charter equivalent (TCE) complaint stood astatine 217,157 dollars per day, down 21.8% from the erstwhile month.

One-year charters were priced astatine 75,500 dollars per day, down 5.6%, while three-year play charters remained broadly stable astatine 47,000 per day.

By contrast, the Aframax/LR2 conception showed a stronger performance. Spot net accrued by 4.2%, with the mean TCE reaching 193,689 dollars per day. One-year charter rates stood astatine 66,750 dollars per day, up 4.7%, while three-year play charters reached 40,750 per day.

Even stronger momentum was recorded successful the LR1 segment, where spot rates surged by 54.7% to 144,820 per day. One-year play charters reached 39,750 per day, while three-year rates stood astatine 30,000 per day.

In the MR merchandise tanker segment, mean spot rates roseate by 13.7% to 63,877 dollars per day, while the Handy conception besides posted a crisp summation of 45.9%, with mean regular net reaching 84,920.

Shipbuilding

In the shipbuilding sector, 58 caller orders were recorded successful April, bringing the total for the archetypal 4 months of 2026 to 248.

VLCCs predominate with 98 orders astatine an mean terms of 130 cardinal dollars, followed by Suezmax vessels with 62 orders astatine 89 million, MR tankers with 50 orders astatine 50 million, and Aframax tankers with 31 orders astatine an mean terms of 77 million.

The total tanker orderbook stands astatine 1,201 vessels against an progressive fleet of 6,204 ships, representing an orderbook-to-fleet ratio of astir 19%.

The largest attraction of caller orders is successful VLCCs, with an orderbook of 250 vessels.

The Suezmax orderbook stands astatine 203 vessels, while Aframax/LR2 totals 221 vessels.

MR tankers relationship for 363 vessels, reflecting semipermanent capitalist assurance successful this segment.

Fleet property profile

The planetary tanker fleet’s property illustration continues to beryllium a cardinal origin influencing marketplace dynamics.

Of the total 6,204 tankers successful operation, 753 vessels are under 5 years old, 1,172 are betwixt 5 and ten years old, 1,051 betwixt ten and 15 years, and 1,701 betwixt 15 and twenty years.

In addition, 1,527 vessels are implicit twenty years old, representing astir 28% of the total fleet.

In the VLCC segment, the progressive fleet comprises 919 vessels, of which 198 are implicit 20 years old.

In Suezmax, the fleet totals 709 vessels, with 156 aged supra 20 years.

The Aframax/LR2 conception includes 1,231 vessels, with 290 implicit 20 years old.

The Panamax/LR1 conception consists of 475 vessels, of which 152 are implicit 20 years old.

The largest conception is MR tankers, with a total fleet of 2,508 vessels, including 622 aged implicit 20 years.

Demolition activity

Scrapping enactment remained limited, with a total of 7 tankers sent for demolition, chiefly successful the Handy and MR segments.

The subdued level of recycling continues to constrain fleet renewal, contempt a important information of the planetary fleet present being of precocious age.