Bunker prices are mostly down with Brent across East of Suez ports today, and Singapore’s VLSFO price has gained against other regional bunkering hubs.
Changes on the day to 16.00 SGT (08.00 GMT) today:
- VLSFO prices up in Singapore ($8/mt), and down in Zhoushan ($11/mt) and Fujairah ($1/mt)
- LSMGO prices up in Fujairah ($3/mt), and down in Singapore ($9/mt) and Zhoushan ($3/mt)
- HSFO380 prices down in Singapore ($7/mt), Zhoushan and Fujairah ($2/mt)
Singapore’s VLSFO continues to be the cheapest among the three ports, despite rising on the day on the back of a higher-priced stem. Fujairah and Zhoushan’s VLSFO prices have come down to $4-5/mt premiums over Singapore.
Fujairah’s fuel oil stocks have gained 9% rising to 7.751 million bbls on the week to 18 October, data from the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone (FOIZ) and S&P Global Platts showed today.
Lead times are steady in the UAE bunkering hub, with HSFO380 being tighter and requiring up to eight days ahead. VLSFO and LSMGO are more readily available in Fujairah at six days ahead.
Brent
Front-month ICE Brent has shed $0.64/bbl on the day, to $84.22/bbl at 16.00 SGT (08.00 GMT) today.
China said yesterday it intends to take measures to mitigate its energy crunch. A critical coal shortage has spiked prices in the country – the world’s biggest energy consumer – and had a knock-on impact on wider energy markets.
Short supply of coal and natural gas has prompted power plants to look towards fuel oil and diesel as feedstock. Saudi Arabia’s energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said the switch from gas to crude oil and oil products could amount to 500,000-600,000 b/d if the winter gets cold, according to Reuters.
Following recent record highs for Chinese coal futures prices, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said yesterday it does not rule out intervening in the futures market. Coal remains China’s primary feedstock for power generation, and futures prices have decoupled from the fundamentals, the NDRC said.
A bigger-than expected US crude stock draw, as measured by the American Petroleum Institute (API), has also weighed on Brent in the past day. US crude inventories grew by 3.29 million bbls in the week to 15 October, overshooting analyst expectations by around 1 million bbls, according to a poll by Oilprice.com.
Official US crude stocks data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) is scheduled for release at 14.30 GMT today.