A broadening of US sanctions on tankers that haul Iranian crude has jammed a crucial cog of the trade, slowing the delivery of oil from the OPEC producer to its most valuable customer: China.

The flow of Iranian crude to China typically has two parts. Sanctioned tankers or those owned by Iran depart from the nation’s oil terminals and then anchor off a midway point in Southeast Asia, usually off Malaysia. Here, a ship-to-ship transfer takes place and a different tanker shuttles the oil to China. Read full article HERE