Prices in East of Suez ports have moved in mixed directions, and availability is good across all grades in Hong Kong.

IMAGE: Container ship and working crane bridge with Hong Kong skyline in the background. Getty Images

Changes on the day to 17.00 SGT (09.00 GMT) today:

• VLSFO prices up in Singapore ($3/mt), unchanged in Fujairah and down in Zhoushan ($4/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Fujairah ($7/mt), unchanged in Singapore and down in Zhoushan ($1/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Fujairah ($2/mt), and down in Singapore ($2/mt) and Zhoushan ($1/mt)
• B30-VLSFO at a $242/mt premium over VLSFO in Singapore
• B30-VLSFO at a $259/mt premium over VLSFO in Fujairah

VLSFO prices across the three major Asian bunker hubs have remained largely stable over the past day, showing no significant movement. Zhoushan’s VLSFO continues to trade at a premium of $20/mt over Fujairah and $18/mt over Singapore.

Bunker demand in Zhoushan remains subdued, with most suppliers recommending lead times of 5–8 days for VLSFO — unchanged from the previous week. HSFO lead times are also steady at 5–8 days, while LSMGO lead times have increased slightly to 3–6 days, compared with 2–4 days last week.

In Hong Kong, lead times across all fuel grades remain around seven days, consistent with recent weeks.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has lost by $0.55/bbl on the day, to trade at $64.11/bbl at 17.00 SGT (09.00 GMT) today.

Upward pressure:

Energy-related sanctions on Russia have provided some upward pressure on Brent’s price in recent days.

Last month, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) targeted Rosneft and Lukoil, including a total of 34 subsidiaries belonging to both companies.

Both companies export around a combined 3 million b/d of crude oil, or about “55% of Russia’s crude and condensate supply,” according to ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes.

The move came one week after UK targeted the same companies, 44 shadow fleet vessels and Indo-Russian oil refiner Nayara Energy, along with a ban on oil products made from Russian crude in third countries.

Downward pressure:

Eight members of the OPEC+ coalition have agreed to raise their combined output by another 137,000 b/d in December – the eighth straight month of planned production hikes.

The decision has put downward pressure on Brent’s price, as signals of further supply additions typically pressure the market in an already oversupplied environment.

“OPEC is aware of the impact its rising output will have on the market,” Hynes said.

Besides, concerns over oil demand growth have capped Brent’s price today. The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) reading in the US and China – the world’s biggest oil consumers – came in at 48.7% and 49% respectively in October.

A PMI reading below 50 indicates a contraction in manufacturing activity — a key gauge of economic health that underscores market concerns over weaker industrial output, which could weigh on oil demand through the rest of the year.

By Tuhin Roy and Aparupa Mazumder

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