Tanker-Rate Slump Signals Retreat in U.S. Oil Imports: Freight
This article is for subscribers only.
The biggest slump in tanker rates since January is signaling weaker U.S. oil imports and spurring analysts to predict a 15-year low for shares of Frontline Ltd., whose ships haul almost enough crude to meet daily world demand.
Rates for the biggest crude carriers tumbled 68 percent in the past two weeks, more than reversing their advance since the end of June, according to Clarkson Plc. Earnings had risen after oil cargoes to the U.S., the second-biggest source of demand for supertankers, expanded for three months. Shares of Hamilton, Bermuda-based Frontline will plunge 43 percent in a year, the average of 13 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg showed.