Russian oil tankers list Singapore as destination amid sanctions and shift to China

South China Morning PostCenter-RightEN 1 min read 100% complete by ReutersFebruary 9, 2026 at 06:54 PM

AI Summary

short article 1 min

Russian oil tankers are increasingly listing Singapore as their destination, with January seeing a surge to 1.4 million metric tons, the highest in recent years. While Singapore doesn't import Russian oil due to sanction risks, its waters are used for ship-to-ship transfers. Traders believe this destination is often a placeholder to obscure the final buyers, with cargo frequently discharged near Malaysia or transferred to floating storage. This shift reflects growing difficulties in selling Russian oil and a shrinking pool of buyers, particularly as India reduces imports following a trade deal with the US. China is now Russia's main customer for oil exports.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Port Said 30% Suez 30% United States 40% Malaysia 50% LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) ×260% India ×260% China ×270% Russia ×480% Singapore ×690%

Keywords

russian oil 90% singapore 80% sanctions 80% china 70% oil tankers 70% export flows 60% india 60% ship-to-ship transfers 50% trade deal 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.30

Source Transparency

Source

South China Morning Post

Political Lean

Center-Right (0.50)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

Singapore

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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russian oil singapore sanctions china oil tankers export flows india ship-to-ship transfers trade deal

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