StealthGas, an owner of 27 small to midsize LPG carriers, has posted a near-record quarterly profit, helped by soaring markets.

“In what normally would be a seasonally weak quarter, we reported net income of $15.7m, the second-best quarter on record, only surpassed by the first quarter of this year,” chairman Michael Jolliffe said.

The third-quarter figure is a jump from $6.7m