Americas bunker benchmarks have taken mixed directions, and Zona Comun could face weather disruptions this week.

PHOTO: An LPG tanker sailing west along the Houston Ship Channel on the way to Galveston Bay. Getty Images

Changes on the day from Friday, to 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT) today:

• VLSFO prices up in Houston ($3/mt), unchanged in Balboa, and down in Los Angeles ($21/mt) and New York ($4/mt)
• LSMGO prices down in New York ($14/mt), Los Angeles ($11/mt), Zona Comun ($5/mt), Houston ($3/mt) and Balboa ($2/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Balboa ($12/mt), New York ($8/mt), Houston ($6/mt) and Los Angeles ($5/mt)

New York’s LSMGO price has dropped more than other Americas ports over the weekend, with pressure from a lower-priced stem. Meanwhile, Houston’s LSMGO benchmark has dipped marginally. This has narrowed New York’s LSMGO price premium over Houston's LSMGO from $41/mt, to $30/mt.

Los Angeles’ VLSFO price has dropped by $21/mt since Friday. One 150-500 mt VLSFO stem fixed at $649/mt on Saturday has added downward price pressure on the port’s benchmark. Houston’s VLSFO price has risen marginally, to narrow its VLSFO price discount to Los Angeles' VLSFO from $69/mt to $45/mt.

Currently, bunkering operation in the Galveston Offshore Lightering Area (GOLA) are taking place on a case-by-case basis due to high waves.

Bunkering is proceeding normally in Zona Comun today. However, bunkering is expected to be suspended again on Wednesday due to a forecast of strong wind gusts of up to 39 knots.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract inched $0.28/bbl lower on the day from Friday, to trade at $83.45/bbl at 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT) today.

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 Debarati Bhattacharjee and Aparupa Mazumder

Please get in touch with comments or additional info to news@engine.online