Bunker benchmarks have moved up with Brent, and inbound vessel movement has been suspended in Gibraltar amid rough weather. 

Changes on the day to 09.00 GMT today:

• VLSFO up in Durban ($15/mt), Rotterdam ($5/mt) and Gibraltar ($2/mt) 
• LSMGO prices up in Gibraltar ($16/mt) and Rotterdam ($12/mt) 
• HSFO prices up in Rotterdam ($5/mt) and Gibraltar ($2/mt) 
• Rotterdam B30-VLSFO premium over VLSFO down by $3/mt to $234/mt

Gibraltar’s LSMGO price has increased by a steep $16/mt in the past day, outpacing Rotterdam’s LSMGO $12/mt gain. These price moves have widened Gibraltar’s LSMGO premium over Rotterdam by $4/mt to $90/mt now. LSMGO availability in Rotterdam is comparatively better than in Gibraltar. Lead times in Rotterdam are 3-5 days, while traders recommend lead times of 5-7 days in Gibraltar. 

Inbound traffic has again been suspended in Gibraltar amid strong wind warnings today, said port agent MH Bland. The Gibraltar Port Authority has issued a strong wind warning in the port. Strong southwesterly wind gusts of up to 35-42 knots are forecast in the port area today, the port authority said. 

Bunkering operations are currently on at the Outer Port Limits and eastern anchorage, says MH Bland. This has led to severe congestion in Gibraltar port with an increase in the backlog of vessels waiting for bunkers today. Altogether, 22 vessels are waiting for bunkers today, up from 13 vessels yesterday, MH Bland said, adding that a supplier is reporting delays of 24-36 hours. 

The situation is similar in Algeciras. Bunkering operations have been suspended at the Delta anchorage, MH Bland said.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has moved $0.78/bbl higher on the day, to trade at $72.08/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

Upward pressure:

Brent’s price moved higher after the US administration tightened its stance on Iran, aiming to drive the country’s oil exports to zero.

US President Donald Trump has imposed another set of strict sanctions on 19 entities and vessels involved in shipping “millions of barrels” of Iranian crude oil. The news has supported supply-related concerns in the global oil market, according to analysts.

“Crude oil gained as the US ramped up efforts to curtail Iranian oil exports,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes said. “We expect Iran's oil exports to fall by around 1mb/d [1 million b/d],” he added.

Besides, OPEC+ members who breached production quotas in the previous months announced new plans yesterday to compensate for the overproduction. Brent’s price gains were “spurred by an unexpected OPEC/non-OPEC plan to rein in its production and the US announcing yet another wave of sanctions against Iranian oil,” VANDA Insights’ founder and analyst Vandana Hari said.

Downward pressure:

Brent’s price felt some downward pressure following a rise in US crude stocks.

Commercial US crude oil inventories increased by 1.7 million bbls to touch 437 million bbls for the week ending 14 March, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

A build in inventories typically signals weaker oil demand, which can put downward pressure on Brent’s price.

By Manjula Nair and Aparupa Mazumder

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