Daily earnings for giant oil tankers on the benchmark Gulf-to-China route jumped to 1.2 million dollars on September 17, 2026, up 79% since the start of the month, according to Baltic Exchange data, as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remained disrupted and the number of vessels available for voyages declined.
1 million dollars a day on the benchmark route
The Baltic Exchange’s index for giant tanker earnings between the Gulf and China stood at 982,072 dollars a day on September 11, 2026, double its level a month earlier, while Clarksons’ estimates put earnings on the same route at more than 1 million dollars a day. The index topped 1 million dollars in subsequent trading before reaching 1.2 million dollars.
Hormuz disruption cuts available capacity
The rise in rates came despite a decline in the volume of crude being transported, as the risks of crossing the strait disrupted the normal use of tankers and extended waiting times. Shipping companies also relied on smaller tankers to move crude through the strait before transferring it to giant tankers through ship-to-ship operations in the Gulf of Oman.
These arrangements require more vessels and more time for each cargo, reducing the effective capacity available in the market and forcing charterers to compete for a limited number of tankers capable of carrying out the voyages.
The increase spreads to alternative routes
The surge extended to routes that do not require passage through the Strait of Hormuz, with the giant tanker index between Oman and China rising to 870,947 dollars a day, up 250% since the start of September, as vessels headed toward the Gulf of Oman and waited for crude transfers from shuttle tankers.
Longer routes also recorded sharp increases as demand shifted to alternative supplies. Daily earnings reached 524,575 dollars on the West Africa-to-China route and 388,417 dollars on the US Gulf Coast-to-China route. This shows how the impact of the Hormuz crisis has spread from the waterway itself to the global crude shipping market.
