Asia’s market structure for high sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) softened into contango on Monday as ample prompt supply outpaced a lukewarm demand recovery from feedstock and bunker buyers, traders said
The cash differential for very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) stayed at a discount wider than $3 a metric ton, while 380-cst HSFO was also pegged near parity to discounts.
Cracks for VLSFO (LFO05SGBRTCMc1) hovered below a premium of $7 a barrel, while 380-cst HSFO crack (FO380BRTCKMc1) closed at a discount of $4.45 a barrel, data compiled by LSEG showed
In tenders, Taiwan Area ,China’s CPC offered LSFO for loading in December. The tender closes on Tuesday and is valid until Thursday, its website showed.
BUNKER SALES
Sales of marine bunker fuel in Singapore fell to a three-month low in September, following a surge in August, although they remained above typical averages, official data showed Tuesday.
Residual bunker volumes logged monthly declines, while total marine gasoil sales inched slightly higher from August. Meanwhile, sales of alternative fuels dipped slightly in September following strong performance in the previous month.
OTHER NEWS
– Oil prices reversed early gains and fell on Tuesday amid uncertainty about trade tensions between the U.S. and China, the world’s top two economies, and as the International Energy Agency flagged weaker fundamentals.
– U.S. crude oil futures backwardation narrowed to a 20-month low on mounting fears of a glut.
– The International Maritime Organization will meet this week to formally decide whether to impose a carbon emissions price on global shipping, a move supported by an EU-led bloc but strongly opposed by the U.S.
– The United States and China on Tuesday began charging additional port fees on ocean shipping firms that move everything from holiday toys to crude oil, making the high seas a key front in the trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
WINDOW TRADES
– 180-cst HSFO: No trade
– 380-cst HSFO: No trade
– 0.5% VLSFO: No trade
Source: Reuters
