Asia’s first-month crack for ultra-low sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO) at 0.5% climbed on Friday, posting a fourth consecutive weekly gain, while cash premiums for marine fuel rose on active deals in the physical market.
First-month VLSFO crack rose to $20.61 a barrel against Dubai crude during Asian trading hours from $19.48 a barrel a day earlier.
The fissure gained nearly 5% this week in its biggest weekly rise in three, according to data from Refinitiv Eikon.
Cash spreads for Asia’s VLSFO at 0.5% were at a premium of $16.91 a tonne to Singapore quotes on Friday, from $16.64 a tonne on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Asia’s cash premiums for 380 cst high sulfur fuel oil (HSFO) fell to 65 cents a tonne at Singapore quotations on Friday from $1.01 a tonne in the session former.
TANKER TARIFFS ARE HIGHER
– Tanker prices are soaring globally as traders scramble to cope with jitters over a possible disruption to Russian supplies, as well as war risk premiums for ships sailing in the region Mediterranean after Moscow invaded Ukraine. Read more
– The global energy sector fears that Europe and the United States will impose sanctions on Russian exports and seriously disrupt supplies.
– Sources also feared that any further widening of sanctions could make some Russian oil and fuel supplies off-limits and trigger a scramble by fuel and oil traders to secure alternative supplies that could tie up ships on trips to exporters in outside the Black Sea region.
ARA INVENTORIES
– Fuel oil stocks independently held at the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) refining and storage center fell 1.9% to 987,000 tonnes in the week to February 24, according to data from the Dutch consulting firm Insights Global.
– Data showed that ARA gas oil stocks increased by 2.9% to 1.6 million tonnes.
WINDOW TRADES
– A high sulfur fuel oil (HSFO) contract of 380 cst, no HSFO trade of 180 cst
– Two VLSFO swaps were reported, totaling 60,000 tonnes of marine fuel purchased by Gunvor from Trafigura
OTHER NEWS
– The global oil market was thrown into chaos on Thursday after Russia invaded Ukraine, with major buyers of Russian oil struggling to secure guarantees from Western banks or find ships to take the crude from one of the world’s largest producers. Read more
– President Joe Biden said Thursday the United States was working with other countries on a combined release of additional oil from global strategic crude reserves, and a source with knowledge of the talks said the plan was in the works. “first steps”. Read more
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Koustav Samanta; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)