Record tanker rates curb US crude flows to Asia as Sinokor dominates Hormuz

· Shipping · United States · South Korea

US crude oil exports to Asia are set to hit multi-year lows after the Iran war disrupted global shipping and pushed the cost of leasing a tanker for the Pacific journey to a record of almost $80 million, gCaptain reported. The rate surge is reshaping trade flows on one of the world's longest oil routes. Separately, data from intelligence firms showed that little-known South Korean shipowner Sinokor dominated oil transits through the Strait of Hormuz in September, with the group's vessels moving more barrels than the next three owners combined, as oil flows through the strait rebounded. The figures underline how war risk and freight economics are redistributing tanker trade among a narrower set of owners and routes.

Why it matters：War-driven freight costs are rerouting crude trade and concentrating tanker market share in a handful of owners, a shift that affects oil exporters, refiners and insurers well beyond the Gulf.

Key points

  • Tanker lease costs for the Pacific run hit a record of almost $80 million
  • US crude exports to Asia are set for multi-year lows after the Iran war
  • Sinokor moved more Hormuz barrels in September than the next three owners combined

Sources (original reporting)

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