Bunker fuel prices have shown mixed movements, and tropical storm Kiko has intensified into a hurricane in the Eastern Pacific.

IMAGE: Aerial view of Port Newark. Getty Images

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

• VLSFO prices up in Balboa ($12/mt), Los Angeles ($3/mt), Houston and New York ($1/mt), and down in Zona Comun ($6/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Balboa ($6/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($7/mt), New York and Houston ($1/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Balboa ($4/mt) and New York ($1/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($5/mt) and Houston ($2/mt)

Balboa’s VLSFO price has recorded the highest gain in the latest session, rising by $12/mt, while its HSFO price has only increased by $4/mt, widening the port’s current Hi5 spread to $47/mt.

HSFO supply in Panama is tight, with suppliers now requiring at least seven days to deliver the grade.

Houston's HSFO availability also remains under pressure, where congestion at the port is causing barge delays, a source said.

In Houston, suppliers can deliver HSFO and LSMGO within seven days, while VLSFO can be delivered within 4–5 days. The shortest time in which a few suppliers can deliver all three grades is 1–2 days.

The National Hurricane Center has issued advisories for Hurricane Kiko and Twelve-E, another tropical depression in the Eastern Pacific, with marine warnings remaining active across the region.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has lost $0.14/bbl, to trade at $68.11/bbl at 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT).

Upward pressure:

Brent crude’s price has gained by more than $1/bbl after Ukraine escalated its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, hitting several oil refineries over the weekend.

On Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv plans to carry out further strikes deep inside Russia following weeks of intensified attacks on its energy infrastructure, according to a Reuters report.

“Crude oil edge[d] higher… as geopolitical risks came back into focus,” remarked ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes.

The recent Ukrainian drone attacks have forced the shutdown of oil facilities accounting at least 17% of Russia’s oil-processing capacity, or about 1.1 million b/d, Reuters estimates.

“Ongoing risks to energy infrastructure in Russia remain high,” Hynes said. “Exports of Russian oil from its ports have dropped to a four-week low of 2.72mb/d [2.72 million b/d], according to tanker tracker data,” he added.

Downward pressure:

The oil market’s attention is increasingly turning to the OPEC+ meeting due on 7 September, according to analysts.

The prospect of a supply glut later this year as the Saudi Arabia-led oil producers group fully unwinds the existing supply cuts, has put some downward pressure on Brent today.

“We believe, just like the broader market, that the group will leave production levels unchanged for October,” two analysts from ING Bank said.

OPEC+ has rolled back 2.2 million b/d of additional voluntary supply cuts over the past six months, ahead of its initial plan.

“The scale of the surplus through next year means it’s unlikely the group will bring additional supply onto the market,” the two analysts added.

By Gautamee Hazarika and Aparupa Mazumder

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