HK Stock Market Move | COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation (01138) surged more than 6%, and spot oil tanker freight rates soared to a nearly six-year high.

COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation (01138) rose more than 6%, up 6.16% to 20 Hong Kong dollars with a trading volume of 1.89 billion Hong Kong dollars at the time of writing. On the news front, it was reported that spot freight rates for oil tankers have surged to a nearly six-year high. The latest data on Tuesday showed that the price for renting a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) to transport Middle East crude oil to China has skyrocketed to over $170,000 per day, tripled from the beginning of the year. Industry insiders point out that in addition to the well-known tensions between the US and Iran, changes in global crude oil supply trends, as well as large-scale ship orders by South Korean shipping companies, have all contributed to the surge in prices. Huayuan Securities believes that the fundamentals of the oil shipping industry continue to improve, and with the "Changjin factor" and the catalyst of geopolitical changes, the "era of oil shipping" is expected to arrive. The bank believes that the strong performance of VLCC rates in the first quarter of 2026 is driven by fundamentals, supply-side restructuring, and geopolitical changes, with three positive trends pushing them higher. The high and sustained expectation for this round of the "era of oil shipping" is expected to exceed expectations.