Tanker rates climb as India boosts imports of Russian seaborne oil

Crude exports from Russia’s western ports of Primorsk, Ust-Luga and Novorossiisk rose by 500,000 barrels per day in September from August to a record 2.5 million bpd, driven by unplanned refinery maintenance.

Freight costs for transporting Urals from the Baltic ports of Primorsk and Ust-Luga to India for late October loading have climbed to around $7 million for Aframax tankers, up from $6–6.5 million for one-way voyages in late August to mid-September, the sources said.