European and African bunker benchmarks took a nosedive tracking Brent’s downturn, and LSMGO is readily available in Istanbul.

IMAGE: Cargo ship passing under bridge traffic at Istanbul. Getty Images

Changes on the day to 09.00 GMT today:

• VLSFO prices down in Gibraltar ($22/mt), Durban ($20/mt) and Rotterdam ($15/mt)
• LSMGO prices down in Rotterdam ($21/mt) and Gibraltar ($19/mt)
• HSFO prices down in Durban ($31/mt), Gibraltar ($13/mt) and Rotterdam ($11/mt)
• Rotterdam B30-VLSFO premium over VLSFO up by $33/mt to $260/mt

Following Brent’s decline, prices across conventional fuels have plunged in the past session. Durban's HSFO price has seen the steepest drop, falling by $31/mt.

Gibraltar’s Hi5 spread has further narrowed to $13/mt, maintaining its two-month long trend of staying under $50/mt.

Rotterdam's Hi5 spread has also narrowed by $4/mt, to $31/mt now.

Bunker prices in Istanbul have also tumbled in the past session. LSMGO grade is readily available at the Turkish port, a trader told ENGINE. HSFO and VLSFO availability is subject to enquiry, the trader added.

The ports in the Gibraltar Strait continue to operate at optimal efficiency, though there are four vessels awaiting bunkers at Gibraltar today, according to port agent MH Bland.

Across the Strait, eight vessels are scheduled to arrive for bunkers in Ceuta, while two vessels are still waiting at berth, according to shipping agent Jose Salama & Co.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has declined by $2.14/bbl on the day, to trade at $66.42/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

Upward pressure:

Brent’s price has found some support after concerns about the US-China tariff war eased. 

The Wall Street Journal reported that the US administration was willing to lower duties on China to as low as 50% in a bid to start negotiations. This news put some upward pressure on oil.

Yesterday, US treasury’s secretary, Scott Bessent, said that the current 145% import tariffs on Chinese goods should come down before trade talks between the two sides could begin, Reuters reports.

Additionally, US President Donald Trump is reportedly considering tariff exemptions on car part imports from China, according to the Financial Times.

The easing tariff tensions has calmed fears of a global trade war and supported demand expectations for commodities like oil, according to market analysts. “Risk assets [like oil] staged a recovery… amid growing hopes for a de-escalation in US-China trade tensions,” two analysts from ING Bank noted.

Downward pressure:

Concerns about excess supply in the global oil market has capped Brent’s price gains today.

OPEC+ member Kazakhstan, after repeatedly exceeding production quota over the past year, has said it would put national interest before the oil coalition’s and continue to maintain higher production levels, Reuters reports.

OPEC+ has faced internal disagreements over quota compliance in the past, with one such rift prompting Angola to leave the alliance in 2023.

“Kazakhstan is openly flouting quotas, pumping at record levels while Saudi Arabia, once the cartel’s swing producer, is increasingly looking like it’s throwing in the towel on price targeting,” SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes remarked.

On the demand side, Brent came under pressure after the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a small rise in crude stocks.

Commercial US crude oil inventories gained by 244,000 bbls to touch 443 million bbls for the week ending 18 April, according to data from the EIA. A buildup in inventories typically signals weaker oil demand, which can put downward pressure on Brent's price.

“Oil’s latest leg lower isn’t just a function of oversupply—it’s the market grappling with fractured alliances and fractured demand signals,” Innes said.

By Samantha Shaji and Aparupa Mazumder

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