Lead times are shorter for low sulphur bunker stems in Singapore this week, and Fujairah has better availability for all three fuel grades.
Singapore’s fuel oil inventories dipped 3% last week, despite exports plunging to 8-month lows, according to Enterprise Singapore data.
Fuel oil exports fell below the 1 million bbls mark, to 768,000 bbls – the lowest levels since early September 2020. At the same time, fuel oil imports grew 28% week-on-week in the bunkering hub, reaching 6.40 million bbls.
Despite the stock draw, lead times for VLSFO stems are shorter in Singapore this week, standing at 5-7 days. Lead times for LSMGO stems are down by one day to 3-4 days. HSFO380 supply is still tight in the bunkering hub, but with lead times are shorter than they were last month with 10 days ahead required now.
Fujairah is seeing better availability of bunker fuels this week, with the earliest delivery date for low sulphur fuel stems being five days away. HSFO380 is also slightly more available in the UAE port, with lead times standing at just four days, since there is more product in the market.
The Chinese bunkering hub of Zhoushan continues to have good fuel availability for all three bunker grades, and with lead times at three days ahead for low sulphur fuel stems. The neighbouring port of Shanghai can also accommodate prompt stems.
A spike in regional Covid-19 cases pushed the Philippines to announce temporary restrictions on crew changes on vessels that have been in the following countries in the last 14-days: Oman, UAE, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and India. Fujairah and Singapore have banned crew changes for ships sailing from India since late April, following surging Covid-19 cases in the country.
The Far East Russian bunker market continues to be tight, with wide spreads in prices offered for both VLSFO and HSFO380 stems, sources say. Fuel production is gradually growing, but favourable export economics has pulled fuel cargoes out of the country.
HSFO380 and LSMGO stems are tight throughout South Korea. The earliest delivery date for VLSFO in southern South Korean ports is currently 21-22 May, which is slightly shorter than last week.
Source: ENGINE (https://engine.online/)