Bunker prices at European and African ports have moved in mixed directions, and bad weather is forecast at the Baltic ports.

IMAGE: Oil products tanker moored at the Port of Gibraltar. Getty Images
Changes on the day to 09.00 GMT today:

• VLSFO prices up in Durban ($2/mt), and down in Rotterdam ($6/mt) and Gibraltar ($3/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Gibraltar ($9/mt) and Rotterdam ($1/mt)
• HSFO prices down in Durban ($10/mt), Rotterdam ($4/mt) and Gibraltar ($1/mt)
• Rotterdam B30-VLSFO premium over VLSFO up by $47/mt to $258/mt

Durban’s HSFO price has recorded the largest decline among the three ports in the past session, narrowing its premium over Rotterdam to $115/mt from $121/mt, and its premium over Gibraltar to $75/mt, from $84/mt.

Gibraltar’s LSMGO price has risen more sharply than Rotterdam’s, widening its premium to $51/mt, from $43/mt.

Most suppliers in Gibraltar are running 4-16 hours behind schedule, further delayed compared to yesterday's 4-8 hours, according to port agent MH Bland. Of the available suppliers at the Mediterranean port, one supplier is 12-16 hours behind schedule. This supplier expects to bunker five vessels today, according to shipping agent Mateos & Sons.

Wind gusts of over 30 knots from the west as well as waves above 2 meters are forecast off Skaw in Denmark and in Sweden’s Gothenburg between 5-6 August, which could disrupt bunkering operations.

Currently, 10 days of lead times are recommended for all grades both off Skaw and in Gothenburg, a trader said.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has declined by $0.39/bbl on the day, to trade at $68.41/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

Upward pressure:

Oil market watchers are closely monitoring the escalating geopolitical tensions that could significantly disrupt global trade and cut a major chunk of Russian oil supply from the market.

Yesterday, US President Donald Trump renewed his threat to impose higher tariffs on imported goods from India, if New Delhi continues its Russian oil purchase, Reuters reports.

In response, the Indian government has dismissed Washington’s stance as “unjustified and unreasonable,” widening the rift between the two trade partners. These developments have provided some support to Brent, according to market analysts.

“India has become a major buyer of the Kremlin’s oil since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine,” said ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes. “Any disruption to those purchases would force Russia to find alternative buyers from an increasingly small group of allies,” he added.

Downward pressure:

Brent crude has continued to slide following OPEC’s latest announcement to accelerate its planned output hikes.

Over the weekend, eight members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) have agreed to collectively increase their supply by 547,000 b/d in September, accelerating the group’s plan to boost crude production.

“This completes the unwinding of the 2.2mb/d [2.2 million b/d] production cuts that eight producers implemented last year to help stabilise the market,” Hynes claimed.

However, there was little clarity on the future of the production cuts introduced by the broader group two years ago, which still keeps 1.66 million b/d of crude oil offline.

By Nachiket Tekawade and Aparupa Mazumder

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