Bunker prices have mixed direction across the Americas, and stormy weather is set to disrupt bunkering in parts of Argentina and Brazil over the next two days.
Changes on the day to 09.30 CST (14.30 GMT) today:
- VLSFO prices up in New York ($8/mt), Houston ($7/mt), Balboa ($6/mt) and Zona Comun ($3/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($4/mt)
- LSMGO prices up in Los Angeles ($14/mt), Houston ($12/mt) and New York ($2/mt), and down in Zona Comun ($5/mt) and Balboa ($2/mt)
- HSFO380 prices up in New York ($12/mt) and Houston ($8/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($20/mt) and Balboa ($10/mt)
HSFO380 remains tight in Houston, where its price has risen to parity with levels in normally higher-priced Los Angeles and New York, and to a $22/mt premium over Balboa. Galveston prices the grade at a similar level to Houston, while Freeport has it around $10/mt higher.
Los Angeles and Vancouver’s LSMGO prices have leaped $13-14/mt higher and risen against San Francisco, where the price only gained by $4/mt on the day.
Los Angeles’ LSMGO discount to San Francisco has narrowed from $22/mt to $12/mt. Vancouver’s premium over San Francisco widened from $3/mt to $11/mt.
Several vessels have been delayed from bunkering in Zona Comun and other Argentinian bunker locations, as high winds have pushed back delivery schedules to tomorrow afternoon and Thursday.
A strong storm has formed in the South Atlantic Ocean, pushing high winds north towards Argentina’s south- and west-facing coasts. The south-facing port of Necochea suspended bunkering operations yesterday afternoon, according to local port agent Antares.
Winds gusts of 21-22 knots are forecast in Zona Comun today and tomorrow, before calming on Thursday. The winds will not impact bunker loadings, only bunker deliveries, sources say.
High winds are also forecast in Brazil’s Rio Grande today. The winds are set to pick up to near gale-strength tomorrow and push waves up over 3 metres.
Brent
ICE Brent September futures have gained $0.47/bbl on the day, to $74.63/bbl at 09.30 CST (14.30 GMT).
Brent rose to intraday highs of $75/bbl today for the first time in two weeks. Tighter global supplies and a weaker US dollar have outweighed demand concerns over rising Covid-19 cases in parts of the world to boost Brent.
The OPEC+ deal to increase oil output by 400,000 b/d in each month from August is not enough to prevent undersupply in coming months and analysts expect a tightening global supply-demand balance.
The US dollar has weakened against other currencies ahead of a two-day Federal Reserve meeting from today. Investors are looking out for comments on employment, inflation and signs of any tapering of the Fed’s asset purchasing.
Cases of the Delta coronavirus variant have surged in several Asia countries, in Germany, and especially in parts of the US with lower vaccination rates. The US has extended travel bans for non-US citizens visiting from most other big countries. Vaccination campaigns are up against the more transmissible Delta variant, but hospitalisation rates are much lower with higher vaccination rates.
Brent has been trading in a narrower range this week, after a sharp selloff and an equally steep recovery last week. Investors await the weekly oil status reports from the American Petroleum Institute (API) later today, and from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) tomorrow for pointers on US demand and further price direction.