Europe rushes to meet U.S. fuel demand, spiking freight costs

European oil traders rushed on Tuesday to book vessels to carry gasoline to consumers on the U.S. East Coast left stranded without their main domestic supply source, more than quadrupling shipping costs, traders and ship brokers told Reuters.

An explosion late on Monday on the Colonial pipeline, which carries roughly one-third of the 3.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of gasoline consumed on the East Coast, makes U.S. drivers more reliant on imported oil products.

But by noon on Tuesday, some 14 ships had been provisionally booked to sail from Europe to the region, raising the cost of 37,000 tonne vessels from roughly $4.20 per tonne to more than $17 per tonne......

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Source: Shipping Tribune