Spot rates for very large gas carriers have reached record levels as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz reshapes global LPG trade flows.
Clarksons Research reported that benchmark freight on the Houston-Chiba route climbed to $290 per metric ton, with daily earnings approaching $170,000 per day, the highest ever recorded for the series.
The surge follows a sharp reduction in LPG flows through Hormuz, a route that normally handles around 30% of global seaborne LPG. With volumes still down by about 90%, Asian buyers have turned aggressively to US cargoes to replace lost Middle Eastern supply.
US LPG exports reached a record 7m tons in April, up 20% from the previous month.
Veson Nautical said the closure of Hormuz is reshaping global LPG routing patterns and forecast VLGC utilization to recover to 89.5% in 2026, supported by negative effective supply growth of minus 0.8%.
Long-haul shipments from the US to Asia have absorbed vessel availability quickly. With Panama Canal transit costs exceeding $1m and average waiting times doubling to more than three days, around half of US LPG exports to Asia are now estimated to be moving via the Cape of Good Hope.
That route covers about 25,600 km, compared with 15,000 km via Panama, and is almost 15,000 km longer than the traditional Ras Tanura-Chiba route.
Clarksons said available tonnage remains extremely tight, with charterers competing for vessels through June. The first prompt vessel is now expected around June 20.
Around 10% of the global VLGC fleet is currently either waiting off India’s east or west coast or trapped inside the Gulf.
