Owners can fetch $115,000 for a Mediterranean voyage compared to $100,000 yesterday and just $37,000 per day last Friday, according to data by Global Hunter Securities (GHS).

“Aframaxes have today gone past $100,000 per day.

"Give it another week at that level and everyone will be piling in to order aframaxes,” quipped a leading tanker broker, pointing to the short rate spike which prompted a flurry of VLCC investment.

The huge aframax gains come amid a general surge in tanker rates over the past few days driven by activity in the Med.

Suezmaxes are paying out more than $120,000 daily following a near 20% rise overnight and rates have risen by over a third over the past week.   

After a slow start to the year VLCC spot rates have rebounded over the past two days thanks to fixtures in the Middle East.

The start of February loadings has pushed rates on the benchmark Arabian Gulf to Japan route up by 60% in the space of a day to $42,000 per day and rates have more doubled from under $20,000 per day since last week.  

However fixtures in West Africa bound for the US are offering owners the most handsome payout at $58,000 daily.