Charter rates for very large crude carriers (VLCCs), which transport about 2 million barrels of oil each, surged to $1.035 million per day on the benchmark Middle East Gulf-to-China route on September 14, according to Baltic Exchange data. The increase reflects a severe shortage of vessels willing or able to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the roughly 20-mile-wide chokepoint between Iran and Oman through which a significant share of the world’s seaborne oil moves. Before the current conflict between the US and Iran escalated around late February 2026, about 125 vessels crossed the strait each day. Military action, blockades and heightened security risks have since sharply limited that traffic. VLCC rates had already reached as much as $650,000 per day earlier in 2026, while earnings exceeded $480,000 per day during calmer periods. Smaller shuttle tankers are increasingly carrying crude through Hormuz and transferring it to larger VLCCs in safer waters, but the relay system has not significantly eased rate pressure. Rates on routes avoiding Hormuz have also reached about $644,000 per day. The Ukraine conflict continues to add pressure through sanctions, insurance complications and shadow-fleet dynamics that have removed vessels from normal commercial service. South Korea’s Sinokor Group has become a prominent participant in the high-rate market by deploying ships where returns are elevated. New supertankers take roughly two to three years to build, delaying any supply response, while strong refining margins continue to support crude-import demand despite rising transport costs.