Filling In the Gap

While many countries have recently been struggling to maintain their crude oil production, the world has yet to truly be affected by a shortage in supply. There are several instances today where countries are unable to produce at peak levels. While much of the focus is on the cases where crude oil capacity has suffered, many countries have increased their production to satisfy global demand. The large consumers of crude, both East and West of Suez, have seen increases in demand in the past year despite rising prices. The Arabian Gulf has largely provided the supply to meet these demands and in recent weeks the rise in VLCC rates for voyages ex-AG has demonstrated the effects of these market conditions.