Regional bunker benchmarks have moved in mixed directions, and prompt supply is tight in the Gibraltar Strait.

IMAGE: Aerial view of the Bay of Gibraltar. Getty Images

Changes on the day to 09.00 GMT today:

• VLSFO prices up in Durban ($3/mt), and down in Gibraltar ($7/mt) and Rotterdam ($4/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Rotterdam ($21/mt), and down in Gibraltar ($4/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Durban ($6/mt), and down in Gibraltar ($4/mt) and Rotterdam ($2/mt)
• Gibraltar B30-VLSFO premium over VLSFO down by $12/mt to $345/mt

Fuel prices in the three major ports have moved in mixed directions in the past session. Rotterdam's LSMGO price has risen sharply, while the grade's price in Gibraltar has edged down. The price moves have narrowed Gibraltar’s LSMGO premium over Rotterdam by $25/mt in a single day.

Fuel availability in Gibraltar Strait ports remains tight for prompt deliveries, with HSFO requiring lead times of around two weeks. VLSFO and LSMGO supplies may require about a week's notice period, a trader said.

Around seven vessels are currently awaiting bunkers in Gibraltar, and some suppliers are reporting delays of 6-8 hours, according to port agent MH Bland. In the nearby Algeciras port, some suppliers are running around 18 hours behind schedule, MH Bland added.

Adverse weather conditions, with wind gusts of over 30 knots and waves over three meters, are forecast in Gibraltar, Algeciras and Ceuta between 6-7 November, which could complicate bunker deliveries.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has declined by $0.66/bbl on the day, to trade at $64.43/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

Upward pressure:

Progress in the US-China trade deal has put some upward pressure on Brent futures today. Both countries are expected to reach a preliminary ‘Framework Agreement’ later this week to ease tariff tensions.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier that negotiators from both sides have agreed on a potential trade framework that eliminates the immediate threat of a 100% tariff escalation on Chinese imports. 

US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet in South Korea on Thursday.

“The accord, which will be formalized during the upcoming Trump–Xi meeting in South Korea, represents a limited but meaningful de-escalation in a trade relationship that has repeatedly cycled through confrontation and temporary truces,” SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes noted.

Downward pressure:

Concerns of a potential supply glut in the global market have once again weighed on Brent’s price.

Oil has moved lower after a Bloomberg report suggested that OPEC+ may announce another monthly increase of 137,000 b/d for December.

Eight members of the OPEC+ coalition are scheduled to meet on 2 November to decide on December production policy.

Meanwhile, some OPEC members, including Kuwait and the UAE, “have suggested that any fall in Russia supply could be met with further increases,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes said.

By Nachiket Tekawade and Aparupa Mazumder

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