Global bunker prices are moving in mixed directions across ports today, while Brent has inched up by another 1% on the day.
Changes in the day to 08.00 GMT today:
- VLSFO prices up in Houston ($9/mt), Rotterdam ($4/mt), Gibraltar ($11/mt), Singapore ($2/mt) steady in Fujairah and down in Gibraltar ($2/mt)
- LSMGO prices up in Houston ($12/mt), Gibraltar ($10/mt), Rotterdam ($5/mt), and down in Singapore ($2/mt) and Fujairah ($21/mt)
- HSFO380 prices up in Gibraltar ($4/mt), steady in Rotterdam and down in Fujairah ($1/mt), Singapore ($3/mt) and Houston ($12/mt)
The number of vessels waiting to receive bunkers in Gibraltar dropped to three this morning, down from 9 yesterday, as suppliers managed to work through their backlogs. There are no delays in Algeciras nor Ceuta today.
Gibraltar’s LSMGO price saw a $10/mt rise today, lifted up by a higher-priced stem of 0-50mt.
The VLSFO price spread between Gibraltar and Rotterdam has widened to $15/mt this week as Gibraltar’s price has seen sharper gains since Monday. The two ports had the fuel grade similarly priced at the beginning of the month.
Fujairah’s LSMGO price recorded the sharpest loss on the day despite Brent prices rising the past couple of days.
Lead times have moderately dropped in Fujairah this week standing at 6 days for all three grades, compared to 8-9 days last week.
The Hi5 spread has gained $10/mt since Monday in the UAE bunkering hub, while Singapore’s price difference between HSFO380 and VLSFO has seen smaller increases of $3-4/mt.
Brent
Front-month ICE Brent has added $0.87/bbl to 08.00 GMT on the day, reaching $71.97/bbl.
The futures contract closed at $72.25/bbl at yesterday’s session, which was the highest levels since 3 August.
Brent was supported by a 3 million bbl stockdraw in US crude oil inventories, according to EIA’s official data that were published yesterday. The drop in inventories exceeded that one of analysts’ expectations, according to a Reuters poll.
But rising Delta variant cases around the world capped Brent’s gains, fueling concerns about oil demand and economic recovery.