Shanghai Air Exchange: Crude oil freight rates fluctuate and consolidate this week.

On May 17th, the Shanghai Shipping Exchange released its weekly report on China's oil tanker transportation market. The report showed that the International Energy Agency has raised its forecast for oil demand growth in 2025 by 20,000 barrels per day to 740,000 barrels per day. Statements from US and Iranian officials suggest progress in nuclear agreement negotiations, which could lead to the lifting of sanctions on Iranian oil exports, limiting the increase in oil prices. This week, Brent crude futures prices rose slightly, while VLCC tanker rates in the global crude oil transportation market remained stable with a slight decrease. The Chinese import VLCC transportation market prices fluctuated and consolidated. On May 15th, the Shanghai Shipping Exchange released its China Import Crude Oil Composite Index, which reported 1191.58 points, a 0.3% decrease from May 8th.