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Bullish As of May 21, 2026 17:00 ET Download PDF

Daily Energy & Shipping Briefing — May 21, 2026

Energy markets on May 21, 2026, were primarily driven by geopolitical tensions, with crude oil prices seeing gains amid ongoing U.S.-Iran negotiations and the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Natural gas remained relatively stable, while U.S. equities showed a mixed but generally positive performance.

Energy Prices

Crude

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
Brent ICE $/bbl 102.50 +1.50
WTI NYMEX $/bbl 100.40 +1.29

Products

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
RBOB Gasoline NYMEX c/gal 213.67 +9.90
Heating Oil NYMEX c/gal 300.00 +12.80

Natural Gas

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
US Henry Hub NYMEX $/MMBtu 3.02 +0.01

Natural Gas Liquids

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
US Mont Belvieu Propane NYMEX $/mt 670.98 -5.33

Price Spreads

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
RBOB Gasoline/Brent Crack Spread $/bbl 23.19 -0.15

Shipping Rates & Bunkers

Dirty Tanker (Spot TCE, $/day)

Vessel Route Spot TCE Avg YTD
VLCC, 270 AG-FE 39,500 39,700
Suezmax, 130 WAF-UKC 28,000 27,500
Aframax, 80 Carib-USGC 22,000 21,800

Clean Tanker (Spot TCE, $/day)

Vessel Route Spot TCE Avg YTD
LR2, 75 AG-FE 20,000 26,400
LR1, 55 AG-Japan 18,500 22,000
MR, 37 TC2 (UKC-USAC) 15,000 16,500

Time Charter & Asset Values

Vessel 1yr ($/day) Newbuild ($M) 5yr ($M)
VLCC, 200+ 49,000 127.0 112.0
Suezmax, 130 35,000 85.0 75.0

LNG Vessels ($/day)

Type Spot Sentiment 52wk Avg
160M3 Tri-fuel diesel electric (East) 13,000 Flat 30,231
174M3 TFDE (Atlantic) 15,000 Stable 35,000

Bunkers ($/mt)

Port VLSFO HSFO MGO
Singapore 508.0 425.0 585.0
Rotterdam 515.0 430.0 590.0

LPG (Spot TCE, $/day)

VLGC, 44 (AG-Japan) 34,643
VLGC, 44 (USGC-Japan) 40,000

Carbon Markets

Instrument Unit Bid Offer
European Union Allowances (Spot) EUR/ton 69.34 69.36

Equities & Currencies

Index Region Last Δ Day
S&P 500 United States 7,445.72 +12.75
Dow Jones Industrial Average United States 50,285.66 +276.31
Nasdaq Composite United States 26,293.10 +22.74
Pair Region Last Δ Day
EUR/$ European Union 1.16 0.00

Developments

  • US-Iran Negotiations Continue to Influence Oil Market Sentiment

    Crude oil prices saw gains as markets closely watched ongoing negotiations between the U.S. and Iran, with potential impacts on global supply.

    StoneX · May 21, 2026

  • Henry Hub Futures Close Higher as EIA Reports 101 BCF Gas Storage Injection

    Natural gas futures saw a slight increase following the EIA's report of a 101 BCF storage injection, which was largely in line with market expectations.

    Sprague Energy · May 22, 2026

  • Strait of Hormuz Closure Continues to Reroute Shipping, Support Ocean Freight Rates

    The ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz to commercial traffic is forcing vessels to take longer routes around the Cape of Good Hope, maintaining a floor under ocean freight rates.

    SeaVantage / Bloomberg · May 12, 2026

  • US Equities Rebound Amid Oil Price Swings; Tech and Retailers See Mixed Fortunes

    U.S. stock markets recovered from early losses, influenced by volatile oil prices, with tech giants like Nvidia showing mixed performance and retail stocks like Walmart facing declines after earnings.

    Motley Fool / Barchart · May 21, 2026

  • US Crude and Gasoline Inventories Decline, Refinery Utilization Remains Strong

    U.S. commercial crude and gasoline inventories decreased, supported by robust refinery utilization rates and strong exports, indicating tightening product markets.

    Market Insights · May 21, 2026