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Bearish As of May 27, 2026 17:00 ET Download PDF

Daily Energy & Shipping Briefing — May 27, 2026

Global energy markets saw significant shifts on May 27, 2026, with crude oil prices plunging on hopes of a US-Iran ceasefire and the potential reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. This eased inflation concerns, boosting US equities to new record highs, while natural gas and NGLs experienced more subdued movements.

Energy Prices

Crude

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
Brent ICE $/bbl 92.25 -4.45
WTI NYMEX $/bbl 88.68 -5.21

Products

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
RBOB Gasoline NYMEX c/gal 313.37 -8.68
Heating Oil NYMEX c/gal 280.00 -7.50

Natural Gas

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
US Henry Hub NYMEX $/MMBtu 3.04 +0.15

Natural Gas Liquids

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
US Mont Belvieu Propane NYMEX $/mt 412.52 -3.67

Price Spreads

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
RBOB Gasoline/Brent Crack Spread $/bbl 39.37 +0.80

Shipping Rates & Bunkers

Dirty Tanker (Spot TCE, $/day)

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

Clean Tanker (Spot TCE, $/day)

Vessel Route Spot TCE Avg YTD
LR2, 75 AG-FE 20,000 26,000
LR1, 55 AG-FE 18,500 22,000
MR, 37 TC2 (UKC-USAC) 16,000 17,500

Time Charter & Asset Values

Vessel 1yr ($/day) Newbuild ($M) 5yr ($M)
VLCC, 200+ 48,500 127.5 111.5
Suezmax, 150 32,000 85.0 75.0

LNG Vessels ($/day)

Type Spot Sentiment 52wk Avg
160M3 Tri-fuel diesel electric (East) 14,000 Slightly Up 30,500
174M3 TFDE (Atlantic) 15,000 Stable 32,000

Bunkers ($/mt)

Port VLSFO HSFO MGO
Singapore 650.0 550.0 700.0
Rotterdam 630.0 530.0 680.0

LPG (Spot TCE, $/day)

VLGC, 44 (AG-Japan) 34,500
VLGC, 44 (USG-Japan) 42,000

Carbon Markets

Instrument Unit Bid Offer
European Union Allowances (Spot) EUR/ton 78.90 79.10

Equities & Currencies

Index Region Last Δ Day
S&P 500 United States 7,520.36 +1.24
Dow Jones Industrial Average United States 50,644.28 +182.60
Pair Region Last Δ Day
EUR/$ European Union 1.16 0.00
USD/JPY Japan 162.50 +0.05

Developments

  • Oil Prices Plunge on Hopes of Iran-US Ceasefire and Hormuz Reopening

    Crude oil benchmarks Brent and WTI saw significant declines on May 27, 2026, as market sentiment improved on reports of a potential ceasefire between the United States and Iran, raising expectations for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and increased global oil supplies.

    AP News · May 27, 2026

  • S&P 500 Hits New Record High as Easing Oil Prices Boost Investor Confidence

    US stock markets, including the S&P 500, continued their upward trend, reaching new record highs. The rally was largely attributed to falling crude oil prices, which alleviated inflation concerns and improved overall investor sentiment.

    TheStreet · May 27, 2026

  • EU Carbon Prices Exceed €79/ton Amid ETS Reform Discussions

    European Union Allowances (EUAs) surpassed €79 per ton on May 27, driven by renewed optimism surrounding EU ETS reform and potential agreements on merging carbon markets between the EU and UK.

    GMK Center · May 27, 2026

  • Henry Hub Natural Gas June Contract Expires Subdued Despite Slight Gain

    The June Henry Hub natural gas contract expired on May 27, closing at $3.04 per MMBtu. Prices remained subdued due to sustained production and healthy storage inventories, despite a slight daily increase.

    EIA · May 28, 2026

  • Mont Belvieu Propane Prices Dip Slightly on May 27

    Mont Belvieu propane spot prices saw a slight decrease on May 27, trading at $0.786 per gallon, down from the previous day's close.

    YCharts · May 27, 2026

  • Goldman Sachs Raises S&P 500 Year-End Target to 8,000

    Goldman Sachs increased its year-end S&P 500 target to 8,000 from 7,600, citing strong earnings growth as the primary driver for the index's performance in 2026.

    24/7 Wall St. · May 27, 2026