*Crude, Gasoil, and Fuels All Gain*
Prices for Brent, ICE Gasoil Swap and Ship Fuel Oils all gained on yesterday, with Crude leading a rally across the board. Brent was up on the day again this morning, dragging with it prices of oil products. Other spreads were relatively stable, as were crack values, which meant that crude price rises directly impacted gasoil and fuel oils. At the time of writing ICE Gasoil Nov contract was up $15 on yesterday’s opening, Rott 3.5% Nov up $11, Sing 380 Nov up $11.25, Rott 0.5% Nov up $13 and Sing 0.5% Nov also up $13. (FIS)
*Oil Prices Climb as Trump’s Return to White House Calms Nerves*
After oil prices fell on Friday as a result of the President’s positive coronavirus test, but the news of his return to the white house has sustained prices around the $41 dollar mark on this morning, with further support offered by the growing hopes of a US stimulus agreement being reached to counter the negative impact of the virus. News reports also coming from the US report of a tropical storm that has the potential to break records, with gale force winds and storm surges predicted. (Reuters)
*China’s Crude Oil Party Is Finally Winding Up, Now for the Hangover*
For 5 months straight, Refinitiv Oil Research is said to have Chinese oil imports at over 11 million barrels per day up to September, reaching a record high of 12.9 million barrels per day in June. Crude was the lowest level in 17 years in April during an OPEC+ price war, which allowed China to take advantage of the falling price. As a result of the increasing imports, tanker congestion meant weeklong waits to discharge, but these are now easing as crude imports ease and some are signaling a hangover in the market as China may not be there to mop up excess supply. (Reuters)
*VPS Exec Sees Bunker Fuel Quality Alerts Surging in 2020 as VLSFO Use Gathers Pace*
Veritas Petroleum Services have seen an increase in bunker alerts since the IMO global low Sulphur mandate was bought into place this year, as the VLSFO have been the main marine fuel choice to meet the requirements. Although, there have been issues with flashpoints and stability with the increasing prevalence of the low Sulphur variants, which tend to have a shorter shelf life when compared to the HSFO, requiring much higher fuel management monitoring. (S&P Global Platts)
*Energy Storage Market to See Explosive Growth This Decade*
The race for governments and companies to become carbon neutral over the next decade is on, and as a result many are predicting a boom in the renewable energy space as oil majors have indicated a shift away from investment into oil production to green energy research to achieve net zero. Reports suggest that there will be a 31% compound annual growth rate by 2030 for the energy storage market, with growth scheduled to occur in the late 2020s for the storage market. (Oilprice.com)