VLSFO prices in East of Suez ports have moved up, and prompt availability of all grades remains tight in China’s Zhoushan.

PHOTO: Aerial view Zhoushan City, Zhejiang Province. Getty Images

Changes on the day from Friday, to 17.00 SGT (09.00 GMT) today:

• VLSFO prices up in Zhoushan ($13/mt), Fujairah ($4/mt) and Singapore ($1/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Zhoushan ($13/mt) and Fujairah ($12/mt), and down in Singapore ($5/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Fujairah ($10/mt) and Zhoushan ($3/mt), and down in Singapore ($1/mt)

VLSFO prices in Zhoushan have increased over the weekend, while prices in Fujairah and Singapore remained stable. As a result, Zhoushan's VLSFO discounts to Singapore and Fujairah's VLSFO prices have been erased and now stand at near parity levels.

Prompt availability of all grades in Zhoushan continues to be constrained, with some suppliers experiencing low stock levels and limited barge availability. Suppliers are advising lead times of 5-7 days, similar to last week.

In the Taiwanese ports of Hualien, Kaohsiung, Taichung, and Keelung, the availability of VLSFO and LSMGO remains stable, with recommended lead times of 2-3 days, virtually unchanged from last week.

In Hong Kong, all bunker grades are accessible, typically with lead times of seven days.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract inched $0.04/bbl lower on the day from Friday, to trade at $83.76/bbl at 17.00 SGT (09.00 GMT).

Upward pressure:

Brent futures gained some upward thrust after ceasefire discussions between Israel and Hamas in Cairo faced obstacles. These talks faced a setback over the weekend, reigniting worries about the oil supply in the region.

“The talks ended with Hamas digging in its heels over its demand for a complete end to the war and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying that doing so would amount to defeat,” VANDA Insights’ founder and analyst Vandana Hari remarked.

Brent prices also gained support as oil market analysts continued to bet on OPEC+ supply-cut extensions into the third quarter of this year.

“[Brent’s] losses were limited as the market contemplates OPEC extending its current output cuts,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodities strategist Daniel Hynes said.

Downward pressure:

Weak economic data from two major oil consumers in the world, the US and China, has heightened worries about global demand and capped the price gains of Brent futures in recent weeks.

Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) reading in the US dipped to 49.2 in April after briefly expanding last month to 50.3, while China's manufacturing PMI dropped to 50.4 in April from 50.8 in March.

China's April manufacturing PMI remained above 50, but a month-on-month fall in the reading has raised some concerns about the country's economic health.

A PMI reading below 50 typically indicates weak economic health and a contraction in the manufacturing sector, which includes production and new orders.

Market watchers will closely monitor China’s first batch of trade data for April, including oil imports, which will be out on Thursday, two analysts from ING Bank said.

By Tuhin Roy and Aparupa Mazumder

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