Most prices in East of Suez ports have been rangebound, and LSMGO lead times vary widely in Singapore.

IMAGE: Container ship with working crane bridge in shipyard in Singapore. Getty Images

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

• VLSFO prices up in Zhoushan ($2/mt) and Singapore ($1/mt) and down in Fujairah ($4/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Singapore ($15/mt), unchanged in Fujairah and down in Zhoushan ($1/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Singapore and Zhoushan ($1/mt) and down in Fujairah ($1/mt)
• B30-VLSFO at a $237/mt premium over VLSFO in Singapore
• B30-VLSFO at a $261/mt premium over VLSFO in Fujairah

VLSFO prices across the three major Asian bunker hubs have remained broadly steady for the second consecutive day. In Singapore, VLSFO is at a marginal premium of $7/mt over Fujairah, but at a discount of $19/mt to Zhoushan.

In contrast, Singapore’s LSMGO price has surged by $15/mt over the past day, while prices in Fujairah and Zhoushan have remained largely unchanged. This jump has nearly eliminated Singapore’s previous discount to Fujairah, and the port now holds an LSMGO premium of $32/mt over Zhoushan.

The price rise has been driven by tightness in supply, as several Singapore suppliers are grappling with low stocks and congested loading schedules, leading to erratic deliveries. Lead times have stretched to 5–17 days, compared with last week’s shorter window of 4–9 days.

By contrast, VLSFO availability has improved, with average lead times now at 5–10 days, an improvement from last week’s range of four days to nearly two weeks. HSFO supply has also improved, with lead times reduced from 6–11 days to 5–10 days.

At Malaysia’s Port Klang, VLSFO and LSMGO remain readily available, and prompt deliveries can still be arranged for smaller parcels, although HSFO supply continues to be limited.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has gained by $0.45/bbl on the day, to trade at $64.56/bbl at 17.00 SGT (09.00 GMT) today.

Upward pressure:

Recent sanctions on Russia’s energy sector have supported Brent’s price this week.

The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) had sanctioned Rosneft and Lukoil along with 34 of their subsidiaries in October.

Lukoil and Rosneft are Russia’s two biggest oil producers, according to market analysts. The sanctions have helped ease some market concerns about a potential supply glut anticipated in 2026.

“Given recent US sanctions on Russia, there is plenty of uncertainty as to the size of this surplus,” two analysts from ING Bank said. “If these sanctions disrupt Russian oil flows, it will eat into the expected surplus early next year,” they added.

Downward pressure:

Brent’s price has come under some downward pressure after the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a sizeable increase in US crude stocks.

US crude oil inventories gained by 6.5 million bbls in the week ending 31 October, according to API estimates.

A build in US crude stocks typically indicates lower demand for oil and can cap Brent's price gains.

“Downward pressure [on Brent] continued in early morning trading today, following a bearish inventory report from the American Petroleum Institute (API),” ING Bank’s analysts noted.

The widely watched official data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) is scheduled for release later today.

By Tuhin Roy and Aparupa Mazumder

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