World’s biggest oil tankers just got a lot more expensive as buyers shift away from Russian crude

The global oil shipping market is undergoing a dramatic shift, with the cost of hiring the world’s largest crude tankers soaring to levels not seen in more than five years. The spike is being driven by two converging forces: new US sanctions on major Russian oil exporters and a rise in crude supply from the Middle East and the United States, reported Bloomberg.

Benchmark rates for very-large crude carriers (VLCCs), each capable of hauling up to 2 million barrels of oil from the Middle East to China, jumped to nearly $137,000 a day at the end of last week — a 576% spike since the start of the year, the Bloomberg report said.