Gulf-to-China Supertanker Rates Hit $510,000 a Day

The daily rate for chartering a supertanker to pick up crude oil from within the Persian Gulf and deliver it to China has surged this week to the highest level in two months as exporters seek vessels to deliver oil to Asian buyers despite a deteriorating security backdrop in the Strait of Hormuz. The benchmark Middle East Gulf-to-China rate for a very large crude carrier (VLCC) jumped to as high as $510,000 per day on Monday, according to data from the Baltic Exchange of tanker rates compiled by Bloomberg. This was the highest daily rate for shipping…