*Egypt’s Suez Canal Authority announced on 22 June that it is extending 1H 2020 discounts for crude oil tankers from the US Gulf, Caribbean and Latin America to Asia until the end of 2020. Shipments heading as far east as Kochi on the west coast of India enjoy a 45% discount, east of this a 75% discount applies.
*Americas-to-Asia crude trade has taken off in recent years. China alone imported a record 1.51mn b/d from the region in 2019, including 800,000 b/d from Brazil, 270,000 b/d from Colombia, 220,000 b/d from Venezuela and 130,000 b/d from the US. The latter is well down on 2018’s 250,000 b/d but volumes are set to surge over the coming months (MEES, 26 June). (CONTINUED - 249 WORDS)
