This thesis is submitted in partial ful lment of the requirements for a PhD degree in Finance. Admittedly, the thesis is more closely related to the eld of maritime economics and focuses on crude oil tanker markets. This thesis studies freight rates, which have sparked the interest of maritime...

Using a novel dataset, we develop a structural model of the Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) market between the Arabian Gulf and the Far East. We study how fluctuations in oil tanker rates, oil exports, shipowner profits, and bunker fuel prices are determined by shocks to the supply and demand...