There has been nothing much to speculate about the LR market since last week. On a positive side, LR2 Owners are putting up stiff resistance against fixing at lower than last done rates. Though the position list still looks healthy, a handful more cargo enquiries are helping to keep the rates stable. For the LR1s, Owners would be looking to keep their ships from sitting with short hauls till the next fixing window. Will the momentum build for the LR2s? That would seem to be the question this week.

A resurgent MR Market last week has seen rates inching upwards bit by bit. This revival has been brought about by the month end influx of cargoes in the North region as the Chinese received fresh export quotas. The strength in the North market has trickled down to the Singapore region. Will MR rates continue to rise or stabilize at current levels? Let’s see what this week brings.