The region’s bunker prices are sharply down, and bunker operations at GOLA are suspended due to rough weather conditions.

PHOTO: Aerial view of Port of Santos. Getty Images

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

• VLSFO prices down in Los Angeles ($30/mt), Houston ($27/mt), New York ($26/mt), Balboa ($23/mt) and Zona Comun ($14/mt)
• LSMGO prices down in Houston ($38/mt), New York ($36/mt), Balboa ($34/mt) and Los Angeles ($31/mt)
• HSFO prices down in Los Angeles ($24/mt), New York and Balboa ($22/mt) and Houston ($21/mt)

Prices across key ports have drastically moved lower, with Houston and New York's LSMGO prices recording the sharpest decline in the past session.

New York’s LSMGO price was at a small discount to Houston at the beginning of the year, but has been trading at a premium since. It is currently $15/mt higher than Houston’s.

Bunker supply in Houston has remained stable this week, though overall demand remains muted.

"The market have seen a steady flow of orders, but strong wind gusts expected over the weekend could disrupt deliveries," a source said.

Suppliers advise lead times of 3–7 days for VLSFO and LSMGO, while HSFO requires 7–10 days.

In New York, bunker demand for HSFO remains firm with good availability, but demand for VLSFO has been relatively weak.

Lead times range between 3–5 days, with longer lead times advised for HSFO.

Bunker deliveries in the Galveston Offshore Lightering Area (GOLA) remain suspended due to rough sea conditions and strong wind gusts.

Extended delays are expected over the coming days, as adverse weather -including high winds and rough seas - is forecast until 7 April.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has lost $3.95/bbl on the day, to trade at $70.16/bbl at 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT).    

Upward pressure:

Brent’s price found some support from supply tightness concerns.

OPEC+ ministers will hold a call later today to discuss the need for compliance with the agreed oil production quotas, Bloomberg reported citing delegates from the alliance.

Kazakhstan has consistently come under pressure for exceeding its production limit during the ramp-up of its massive Tengiz oil field expansion.

“Some [OPEC+] members have been overproducing against their quotas and have been asked by de facto leader Saudi Arabia to make extra curbs as compensation,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes remarked.

Downward pressure:

Brent’s price plunged after US President Donald Trump unleashed the highly anticipated tariffs on all global trade partners.

Trump announced that a minimum 10% tariff will be imposed on all countries exporting goods to the US from 5 April, in response to the high tariffs those nations already impose on American exports.

The announcement has sparked concerns of a major global trade war that could dampen demand for commodities like oil, according to market analysts. “The global trade order just got rewritten. The U.S. is weaponizing deficits — and the market will need to quickly sort the winners from the losers,” SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said.

Brent’s price felt more downward pressure after the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a massive 6.2 million-bbl surge in US crude oil inventories. A surge in inventories signals weaker oil demand, which can drag Brent's price down.

The weekly EIA inventory report was “fairly bearish,” two analysts from ING Bank noted.

By Gautamee Hazarika and Aparupa Mazumder

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