Tanker Rates for Red Sea-Loading Saudi Crude Plunge

Freight rates for tankers to ship Saudi crude from the Yanbu port on the Red Sea to Asia have slumped from the highs seen earlier this month, as more vessels are diverting to the Saudi export port that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz. Tanker rates on the Yanbu-Asia route have slumped from a high of over $450,000 per day in early March to about $200,000 per day for voyage agreed this week on a 2011-built very large crude carrier (VLCC), according to sources familiar with the deals and brokerage reports cited by Bloomberg. With the Persian Gulf-Asia…