Bunker prices are mostly down across East of Suez hubs as Brent has slipped on the day.
Changes on the day to 16.00 SGT (08.00 GMT) today:
· VLSFO prices down in Singapore ($6/mt), Fujairah ($4/mt) and Zhoushan ($2/mt)
· LSMGO prices down in Fujairah ($12/mt), Singapore ($5/mt) and steady in Zhoushan
· HSFO380 prices down in Fujairah ($2/mt), Zhoushan ($1/mt) and steady in Singapore
Bunker operations have resumed with calmer weather in Zhoushan as of today. Typhoon Chanthu had been lingering in the region this past week. Suppliers are facing lengthy delays trying to clear their backlogs, with only one of them able to supply as soon as Sunday.
VLSFO prices have seen sharper drops in Singapore and Fujairah today, while Zhoushan’s price has been more resilient to lower Brent values. The Chinese port currently prices the grade at a $4/mt premium over Singapore and Fujairah.
Singapore’s fuel oil stocks fell by 12% to 21.30 million bbls on the week to 15 September, data from Enterprise Singapore data showed yesterday. Singapore’s fuel oil net imports surged by 176% on the week, to 7.73 million bbls. But the port’s net imports have averaged lower so far in September than on average in August.
Fujairah’s lead times have dropped this week, with six days required for VLSFO compared to eight days for HSFO380. The port’s fuel oil inventories fell to 7.47 million bbls, their lowest levels since late March, data from the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone (FOIZ) and S&P Global Platts showed this week.
Brent
Front-month ICE Brent has slipped $0.22/bbl lower on the day, to $75.25/bbl at 16.00 SGT (08.00 GMT).
Brent is on track to gain more than $2/bbl on the week, however. The future has drawn support from an extended period of capped crude oil production in the Gulf of Mexico. About 95% of production was shut in as producers braced for incoming Hurricane Ida nearly three weeks ago.
Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed this week that after nearly two weeks of capped production, US crude stockpiles had slumped to two-year lows on 10 September.
“Crude prices continued to climb higher after the EIA oil inventory report showed a bigger-than-expected draw,” OANDA analyst Ed Moya said.
That production has gradually come back online. The share of shut-in production had dropped to 28% yesterday, according to an estimate by the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.