Tanker Shares Sink Lower
At MarineMoney's New York City event earlier this summer, tanker operators were in a somber mood, and Michael Reardon, Manager Global Strategy and Freight Traiding, ConocoPhillips, was quoted as saying: âFloating storage took VLCCs out of the market and sent false signals to the market ... Don't look now, but things have gotten worse. Yesterday, in an Associated Press report, a Jefferies analyst downgraded shares of Overseas Shipholding Group Inc. and Frontline Ltd., saying the economy won't grow fast enough to stimulate oil production and boost rates for tanker companies by the end of the year. While IEA's decision in late June to release oil from emergency stockpiles reduced and delayed tanker charter rate rebound expectations into the fourth quarterâŚ
Tanker Market in the Doldrums
The global tanker market is depressed, it appears that there is little hope that it will recover for at least two years, according to a panel of expert speaking yesterday at a MarineMoney event in New York City. âWhat a difference a year makes,â said Jonathan B. âLast year everyone was slapping each other on the back, but I donât think there is any doubt where we are today; we are in a trough,â Chappell said. The global shipping markets are historically cyclical and difficult to predict, even for seasoned veterans, and there was no consensus on when a full recovery would come about, though generally it seems 12 to 36 months is a popular line of thought. âThe easy answer is: ârates are down and there are too many ships,ââ said Jan Andersen, Head of Shipping, ST Shipping and Transport Pte.
