On the morning of April 18, 2026, the master of a crude oil tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz broadcast a transmission that remains the clearest summary of what our observation window had documented over the preceding seven days: “You gave us clearance. You gave us clearance. We are second on the list.” Seventeen hours …
The existing blockade of the Hormuz Strait could be far reaching and have long-lasting effects in the tanker market, essentially increasing ton-mile demand. In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Intermodal said that “in the VLCC market, Basrah exports are one of the main short-term variables. Iraq is one of the largest Gulf crude suppliers into …
Tanker Market: Ton-Mile Demand Could Shift Read More »
The conflict has triggered a sharp repricing across tanker freight, but the response has not been uniform. Crude and clean tankers both rallied as disruption risk centred on the Middle East Gulf forced charterers and owners to reassess exposure to the Strait of Hormuz. However, the underlying drivers are now diverging. Dirty freight is increasingly …
Tanker freight behaviour diverges after the conflict shock Read More »
Events in the Middle East are once again reminding the world of a fundamental truth: global supply chains are not abstract systems. They are physical, exposed, and deeply intertwined with the wider world economy. Disruption in one region now reverberates rapidly across markets, industries and societies. Energy flows, commodity prices, inflationary pressures and trade routes …
BIMCO: Geopolitics, supply chains – and the human face of global trade Read More »
The product tanker market has been adapting to the new market reality that has been shaping after the war in Iran. In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Gibson said that “the conflict in Iran concludes its eighth week and tanker markets are adapting to the new reality. In the East, clean exports are so far …
Product Tanker Market Adapting to The New Market Realities Read More »
Capesize The market began the week with strong upward momentum, briefly pushing the BCI 182 5TC to the cusp of $39,000, supported primarily by strength in the Atlantic basin. Early gains were driven by a firm C3 market and a tightening ballaster list, particularly for May dates, while fronthaul activity provided a notable boost. However, …
Dry Bulk Market Trending Higher Read More »
Since 13 April, the challenge for vessels to enter or leave the Middle East Gulf has been complicated significantly. While in the first 1.5 months of the conflict the full focus was on the Strait of Hormuz, the targeted US blockade on Iranian or Iran-related vessels is geographically much less specific. Accordingly, we have to …
Transit or no transit – that’s the question Read More »
The dry bulk market has been supported from a further increase of Australian iron ore exports during the first quarter of 2026. In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Banchero Costa said that “2025 was another positive year for global seaborne iron ore trade. In Jan-Dec 2025, global loadings of iron ore increased by +3.5% y-o-y …
Dry Bulk Shipping: Australian Iron Ore Exports On the Rise Read More »
AXSMarine AIS-derived crossing data, collected continuously from 1 March through 21 April 2026, documents how the Strait of Hormuz has functioned – and who has been willing to use it – in the weeks since the conflict began. From Stillness to Structure When we published When the Gulf Went Still in early April, the defining …
The Strait After the Ceasefire. Seven Weeks of Data from the Gulf’s Only Maritime Exit Read More »
The case of Eagle Bulk Pte Ltd (now Star Bulk (Singapore) Pte Ltd) -v- Traxys North America LLC (MV Canary) [2026] EWHC 518 (Comm) highlights that challenges under s.68 of the Arbitration Act 1996 (1996 Act) to arbitration awards, on the ground of serious irregularity leading to substantial injustice, will only succeed in those relatively …
Need for “fair, commercial, commonsense reading” of awards Read More »
