Soaring tanker rates trigger heavy crude oversupply in the Americas

A global shortage of shipping vessels and record-high tanker rates have caused a surplus of heavy crude oil in North and South America, Oilprice, BigGo Finance, and gCaptain reported. The logistics bottleneck has left heavy grades stranded in the Western Hemisphere, while buyers in Asia and Europe face supply shortages. The crisis has pushed Canadian, Colombian, and Ecuadorian crude prices down by approximately $10 per barrel, according to Oilprice. [1][3][4][5][6]

The surge in freight costs stems from an ongoing crisis in the Middle East, Oilprice reported. Canada is currently producing more than 5 million barrels of crude oil daily, with the majority consisting of heavy crude. Roughly 4 million barrels per day of Canadian output is typically exported south to refineries in the United States, according to Oilprice. [1]

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime choke point that previously handled roughly 25 percent of world seaborne oil trade, has been largely blocked by Iran since late February 2026. The disruption began after military strikes launched by the United States and Israel led to retaliatory attacks and sea mine deployments by Iranian forces in the waterway. [7]

The widening price discounts in the Americas highlight how maritime shipping disruptions are rebalancing global energy markets. With high freight costs limiting long-distance transport, regional oversupply in the Americas is expected to persist until global vessel availability stabilizes. [1][3][5]