European and African bunker benchmarks have risen further and Gibraltar's Hi5 spread has tightened to just over $20/mt.

IMAGE: The Port of Piraeus. Getty Images

Changes on the day to 09.00 GMT today:

• VLSFO up in Durban ($13/mt), Gibraltar ($8/mt) and Rotterdam ($6/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Rotterdam ($15/mt) and Gibraltar ($14/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Gibraltar ($13/mt), Durban ($12/mt) and Rotterdam ($6/mt)

Prices across conventional fuel grades have continued moving upwards in the past session. Durban has recorded the biggest gain for VLSFO among the three ports.

Gibraltar’s Hi5 spread has narrowed by $5/mt to just $22/mt, and has not been above $50/mt in two months.

The port's Hi5 spread - a measure of favourable scrubber economics - has been squeezed in recent months. It has averaged just $34/mt so far in April, after $28/mt in March. That is significantly down from February ($56/mt), January ($62/mt) and 2024 as a whole ($65/mt).

Bunker conditions are good and waiting times relatively short in Gibraltar. Two vessels are waiting for bunkers in the port today, up from just one yesterday, says port agent MH Bland.

The Portuguese port of Lisbon has good bunker availability across all three conventional fuel grades, with recommended lead times of 5-7 days, according to a trader.

Lisbon's VLSFO, LSMGO and HSFO grades are currently at $15-25/mt premiums over Gibraltar's.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has moved $1.41/bbl higher on the day, to trade at $68.56/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

Upward pressure:

Brent has moved higher following the weekly oil inventory report from the American Petroleum Institute (API).

US crude oil inventories fell by 4.6 million bbls in the week ending 18 April, according to the API. A drop in US crude stocks typically indicates higher demand and can lend some support to Brent's price.

Brent has also gained as market participants assessed the impact of new US sanctions on Iran.

Washington has announced fresh sanctions targeting an Iranian shipping magnate whose vessels have allegedly transferred “hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Iranian liquid petroleum gas and crude oil,” the US treasury department said.

Downward pressure:

Brent price gains have been capped by negative sentiment in the broader financial markets after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lowered its 2025 global economic growth forecast.

The agency, which represents 190 member countries, projects global gross domestic product (GDP) growth to drop to 2.8% this year, down from 3.3% projected in January. For 2026, it expects world GDP to grow by 3%.

The IMF now expects weaker growth partly as it thinks oil demand will drop as a result of the ongoing trade war between the US and China, broader US trade tariffs on other countries and mounting uncertainties over trade and monetary policies.

By Samantha Shaji and Aparupa Mazumder

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