Persian Gulf Tanker Rates Fall to One-Year Low on Ship Glut

(Bloomberg) — The cost of shipping Middle East crude to Asia fell to the lowest in more than a year as ship supplies accumulated and OPEC prepared to weigh up a new production cut.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will likely lower output before the end of the year, according to 18 of 21 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. OPEC meets in Cairo on Nov. 29. Freight rates on the benchmark route from Saudi Arabia to Japan, as measured by the London-based Baltic Exchange, fell to the lowest since Nov. 13, 2007.