Asia’s spot fuel oil markets were little changed in quiet trade on Thursday, though selling interest continued to emerge for very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO).
Multiple spot offers persisted in the spot market, capping benchmarks at the current levels. Meanwhile, the high sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) market was rangebound in thin trading.
The hi-5 fuel oil spread continued to narrow, with the December contract closing at around $88 a metric ton. The spread has narrowed this month due to a weaker VLSFO market and a stable-to-firmer HSFO market.
Refining margins for VLSFO held between premiums of $11.25 and $11.50 a barrel, while 380-cst HSFO cracks rose day-on-day to discounts of around $2.50 a barrel.
Meanwhile, inventories at the Singapore hub rose this week as net imports jumped. Most inflows hailed from Brazil, the United States and Russia, official data showed.
INVENTORY DATA
– Singapore onshore fuel oil stockpiles rose 13.2% to 19.23 million barrels (about 3.03 million metric tons) in the week to Nov. 27, logging five-week highs, based on Enterprise Singapore.
OTHER NEWS
– Oil prices drifted lower after a surprise jump in U.S. gasoline inventories, with investors focusing on an OPEC+ meeting to discuss oil output policy.
– The OPEC+ alliance of oil-producing countries has postponed its meeting on output policy to Dec. 5 from Dec. 1 to avoid a conflict with another event, OPEC said.
– Oil producers in Canada and Mexico will likely be forced to reduce prices and divert supply to Asia if U.S. President-elect Donald Trump imposes 25% tariffs on crude imports from the two countries, traders and analysts said.
– Dubai-based Gulf Transport and Trading will load a cargo of low-sulphur fuel oil from Nigeria’s Port Harcourt oil refinery this week after winning a tender, an industry source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
WINDOW TRADES
– 180-cst HSFO: No trade
– 380-cst HSFO: No trade
– 0.5% VLSFO: No trade
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Jeslyn Lerh; Editing by Savio D’Souza)