Socar Overseas and the Foresight Group are said to be about to offload their last big tankers to Greek companies that have not bought such ships in years.

The deals, reported by several brokers in Greece and the US, reaffirm the status of aframaxes as one of the most frequently traded assets in the secondhand market for tankers.

They could also be read as a sign of more buyers entering the market in anticipation of a tanker earnings recovery, which has proved elusive so far.