In the landed price of the seven arbitrage grades, freight is the big money hiding at the back. Lula from Brazil floats 30 to 45 days, the US Gulf a month plus; Middle East short-haul grades like ESPO, Dubai and Oman arrive in fourteen days. Same cargo value, but long-haul adds not just time but capital tie-up and freight volatility.

Hormuz and the Red Sea, two chokepoints, push freight and war-risk premiums up. Whether you divert or push through, every barrel's landed price carries an extra line. That is where STS transshipment earns its keep — switching from a large vessel to a smaller one at the Sohar or Fujairah anchorages costs far less than discharging and reloading in port. Once the destination is locked it cannot change; transshipment swaps the ship, not the port.

Among the seven, Basrah Light (Iraq, exempted and tradable) runs the short Middle East line, ESPO hugs the Russian Far East, Lula the long South American haul. When freight moves, today's cheap cargo can turn pricey, and the landed ranking shifts monthly rather than sitting as a fixed list.

For buyers the point is not chasing the lowest FOB but folding freight, war risk, STS cost and capital tie-up into one landed model. Whoever settles that total first holds an extra card at the negotiating table.