European and African bunker prices have mostly recovered on the back of Brent, and risen towards recent highs.
Changes on the day to 08.00 GMT today:
- VLSFO prices up in Rotterdam, Gibraltar and Durban ($7/mt)
- LSMGO prices up in Gibraltar ($14/mt) and Rotterdam ($8/mt)
- HSFO prices up in Rotterdam ($5/mt), and down in Gibraltar ($7/mt)
Rotterdam’s bunker prices have gained across fuel grades, with HSFO380 and LSMGO approaching the multi-year highs made earlier this week. Its price for VLSFO has traded close to all-time highs of more than $600/mt. The grades are readily available for prompt deliveries in the ARA hub.
Gibraltar’s HSFO380 price has dipped under pressure from a 500-1,500 mt stem, pulling it down to $17/mt discounts to Malta and Las Palmas. Several suppliers can accommodate prompt stems of all grades in Gibraltar.
Some bunker congestion has built in Gibraltar today, with three vessels in line to bunker with two suppliers, port agent MH Bland says.
Bunkering can be suspended with bad weather in Las Palmas today, the port agent says. High swells are forecast for the better part of the week ahead. Backlogs could mount.
Brent
The front-month ICE Brent futures contract has gone up by $0.88/bbl in the past day, to $85.10/bbl at 08.00 GMT today.
Brent is up with support from a surprise standstill in US crude stock movements.
Analysts polled by S&P Global Platts expected US crude inventories to gain 2 million bbls in the week to 15 October. The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a 3.29 million-bbl build on Tuesday.
Yesterday’s official figures from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) defied those expectations with virtually unchanged stock levels at 426.54 million bbls, and boosted Brent by almost $1/bbl in the 15 minutes after they came out.
“While the weekly numbers showed that commercial crude oil inventories declined by just 431Mbbls, total oil and product stocks fell by 9.81MMbbls over the week…If this trend continues there will be growing concerns over hitting tank bottoms,” ING strategists Warren Patterson and Wenyu Yao said.
Patterson and Yao added that OPEC+ has come under reinforced pressure to increase output to stave off further oil price rises. Calls from India and the US to pump more have recently been echoed by Japan. The three major economies are concerned that high energy prices could hold back economic activity as they recover from the pandemic downturn.