TradeWinds: Market Monitors Crisis

“The crisis in Crimea could have a significant impact on the tanker market if Ukraine and other European nations end up reducing their reliance on Russian crude, a leading investment bank told clients Monday….On Friday US tanker broker Poten & Partners issued a weekly market note in which it pointed out that the region’s crude trade is currently dominated by aframaxes and is already known as a particularly volatile area in terms of day rates. The firm admitted that the full extent to which the conflict will impact natural gas and oil supplies is not yet clear but warned that the ramifications for the tanker market ‘will likely be significant’ if trade barriers take root.”