Experts expect the relatively high rates to continue in the Jones Act tanker sector, although a trio of risks mean some decline is likely.
The key questions facing the sector are a large orderbook, the potential for US crude exports and the impact of low oil prices on domestic production in the US.
The tanker and oceangoing tank barge markets protected by the US Jones Act cabotage law — which requires domestic shipments to move on US-built, US-owned and US-crewed vessels — have seen boom times in recent years, which led shipowners to snap up all available shipyard slots.
