Oil tanker rates continued to rise on Wednesday as concerns over further supply disruptions from US sanctions increased, according to a Reuters report. Rates for tankers carrying oil also got a boost from increased demand from traders loading Middle Eastern crude grades for Asia.

Oil tanker rates jumped on Monday as the Biden Administration’s sanctions on Russia’s petroleum trade threaten to cut the supply of ships while forcing traders to seek alternative sources of crude.

Dodging the cap has increased the price Russia gets for its oil on global markets, sanctions experts say. The discount for Russian oil compared to international benchmark Brent crude has shrunk from as much as $35 per barrel to less than $10 per barrel. Russia has seen oil income hold up steadily and even rise.

Oil shipping rates extended their rally on expectations of a tightening in global tanker supply from wider U.S. sanctions on Russia's fleet and traders' demand for ships to load Middle East oil for Asia,

Five of those tankers were stationary off Chinese ports and a further seven dropped anchor off Singapore, with others halting near Russia in the Baltic Sea and the Far East, according to Reuters' analysis based on MarineTraffic and LSEG ship tracking data.

At least 65 oil tankers have anchored in various locations around the world, including off the coasts of China and Russia, since the US announced a new package of sanctions on January 10, Reuters reports.

Supertanker freight rates jumped after the U.S. expanded sanctions on Russia's oil industry, sending traders rushing to book vessels to ship supply from other countries to China and India, shipbrokers and traders said.

Since the United States announced a new package of sanctions on 10 January, at least 65 oil tankers have been anchored in various locations, including off the coasts of China and Russia. Source: Reuters Details: Five of these tankers remain off Chinese ports,