A hot sale-and-purchase market pushed tanker value indicators to new 13-year highs as the volume of deals has made 2022 the busiest year yet in the sector.
The Baltic Exchange’s Tanker Sale and Purchase Index rose to just over 60,900 on Friday, which marked a 2.3% gain over the prior week.
It was the highest reading since 2 February 2009, when tankers were still climbing down from the 2008 peak before a financial crisis popped the shipping bubble.
Tanker values also fuelled a gain in the broader Baltic Sale and Purchase Index, which jumped 560 points over the week to reach nearly 47,200.
VesselsValue’s tanker price index also moved higher, rising 0.7% during the week to $462 per dwt, which was a 7.5% monthly jump and 61.6% higher than the same period of last year.
The tanker asset price gains came in a week when even older VLCCs were changing hands for frothy prices.
As TradeWinds reported on Tuesday, Greek brokers said Hellenic Tankers sold the 306,000-dwt Princess Mary (built 2004) for between $48m and $50m.
That was well above estimates of less than $40m.
Maran sale
Brokers in London and the US also said that Maran Tankers sold its 320,800-dwt Maran Aquarius (built 2005) for between $52m and $52.5m, which also beat market estimates of $39.4m to $44.3m.
The continued sales activity in the sector pushed the number of tanker deals to 521 so far this year. Clarksons said on Friday that the figure makes 2022 the busiest year yet for tanker sales volume, and there are still nearly three months to run.
In suezmaxes, Clarksons said on Friday that Euronav sold the 159,000-dwt Cap Guillaume (built 2006) for $36m, after TradeWinds reported that the Belgian tanker owner was in advanced talks to sell the ship.
That price tag is well above the $23.5m paid for a suezmax of the same vintage in June, although the Cap Guillaume also benefits from an ice-class premium.
If there are any signs of weakness in the hot tanker sale-and-purchase market, it was in the product sector.
“In the product tanker sector there has been a notable slowdown in activity as a glut of non-eco tonnage has entered the market, offering buyers much greater choice and bargaining power,” said Clarksons.
“There appear to be fewer buyers currently willing to pay today’s asking prices, and the bid/offer spread is widening.”
The slowdown has yet to push price assessments lower, as the Baltic Exchange’s assessment of a five-year-old MR tanker moved up 0.7% over the week to $39m.
