Asia’s high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) market kicked off the new month on a stronger note as higher bids emerged, while very-low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) extended declines from previous sessions.
Cash differential for 180-cst HSFO flipped to a premium, closing at $1.05 a metric ton over Singapore quotes, while premium for 380-cst HSFO cash differential edged higher to $4.58 per metric ton.
Refining margins for HSFO also firmed at the Asia close (0830 GMT), despite an uptick in crude oil prices after Saudi Arabia said it would extend supply cut through August.
The 180-cst HSFO front-month crack spread closed higher at a discount of $5.87 a barrel, while 380-cst HSFO crack rose to a discount of $7.05 a barrel.
Meanwhile, the 0.5% VLSFO market remained weak. Premium for the product’s front-month crack fell to $10.03 a barrel at the Asia close, while cash differential eased to a premium of $13.19 a metric ton.
REFINERY FIRE
Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company put out a fire at the al-Zour refinery without any reported injuries, a company spokesperson said on Monday.
The refinery is back to work normally, with production and export operations continuing, the spokesperson added.
So far, there was no immediate impact on loadings of refined products including VLSFO, market sources said.
OTHER NEWS
– Oil rose on Monday as top exporter Saudi Arabia extended its supply cut through August, overshadowing concerns about a global economic slowdown and possible further interest rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve.
– China’s Ministry of Finance and State Taxation Administration announced that a series of fuel blending components would be subject to consumption tax with immediate effect.
– Indian refiners have begun paying for some oil imports from Russia in Chinese yuan, sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, as Western sanctions force Moscow and its customers to find alternatives to the dollar for settling payments.
– Hungary will ask the European Union for a one-year extension of an exemption from sanctions against Russia that allows refiner Slovnaft, part of MOL, to export products refined from Russian oil to the Czech Republic, Hungary’s foreign minister said on Monday.
WINDOW TRADES O/AS
– 180-cst HSFO: No trade
– 380-cst HSFO: No trade
– 0.5% VLSFO: Two trades
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Jeslyn Lerh; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)