November proved another barren month for tanker newbuildings, the second such month in 2021 when no new orders were placed, according to a top shipbroker.
Affinity (Shipping) said this underscored the current bearish sentiment among buyers amid a "gloomy outlook for the market and an environment of weak freight earnings".
"This is a stark contrast from what was seen during the same period last year, when the level of ordering ramped up exponentially on the back of pent-up demand due to Covid-19 and optimism for 2021," the shipbroker said.
