Bunker prices at European and African ports have moved in mixed directions in the past day, and congestion has eased in Gibraltar.

IMAGE: Oil tanks and terminals in the Port of Gothenburg, Sweden. Getty Images

Changes on the day to 09.00 GMT today:

• VLSFO prices unchanged in Gibraltar and Durban, and down in Rotterdam ($1/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Rotterdam ($20/mt) and Gibraltar ($4/mt) 
• HSFO prices up in Rotterdam ($1/mt), and down in Gibraltar and Durban ($1/mt)
• Rotterdam B30-VLSFO premium over VLSFO up by $12/mt to $240/mt
• Gibraltar B30-VLSFO premium over VLSFO down by $57/mt to $243/mt

A higher-priced 150-500 mt LSMGO stem fixed at Rotterdam pushed the benchmark upwards, aiding in the grade's $20/mt gain in the past session.

This price increase has significantly narrowed Gibraltar’s LSMGO premium over Rotterdam to $30/mt, down from yesterday's $46/mt.

A $57/mt decline in Gibraltar’s B30 VLSFO price narrowed the port’s premium over Rotterdam's B30 VLSFO by $68/mt, to $32/mt.

Congestion at Gibraltar has also eased significantly, with only two vessels awaiting bunkers, down from ten yesterday, according to port agent MH Bland. Some suppliers continue to run 6-12 hours behind schedule, the port agent added.

The German port of Hamburg has good availability for all grades with recommended lead times of 3-5 days, a trader said.

Meanwhile, lead times of ten days are recommended for all grades in Gothenburg and off Skaw.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has moved $0.38/bbl lower on the day, to trade at $68.53/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

Upward pressure:

The European Union’s (EU) latest round of sanctions on Russian energy has provided modest support to Brent’s price this week.

Last week, the EU approved the 18th package of economic sanctions, aimed at limiting Moscow’s oil revenues.

The EU targeted 105 shadow fleet vessels that Russia allegedly uses to circumvent the price caps set on its crude and oil products.

The EU has also lowered the oil price cap for Russian crude from $60/bbl to $47.60/bbl.

“It [price cap] will be set dynamically at 15% below market rates moving forward, which would see the threshold start off somewhere between USD45–50/bbl [$45-50/bbl],” said ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes.

Downward pressure:

Brent’s price has slipped on worries that mounting US-EU trade tensions may dent crude oil demand by undermining global economic activity.

“[The] persistent US trade tensions stoked worries that countries may not be able to strike deals before the August 1 deadline,” remarked VANDA Insights’ Vandana Hari.

EU envoys are set to meet this week to formalise a plan to respond to a possible no-deal scenario with the US, Bloomberg Reports.

The US is expected to put a near-universal tariff on EU goods higher than 10%, with fewer exemptions, another Bloomberg report adds.

“The trade deal impasse could hurt economic activity and thus crude oil demand,” Hynes added.

By Nachiket Tekawade and Aparupa Mazumder

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