The front-month VLSFO crack closed at $7.98 a barrel at the Asia close (0830 GMT), sliding 7% in the week, Refinitiv data showed. Kuwait's Al Zour refinery has stopped offering VLSFO for now amid a partial shutdown at the complex, with no new tenders spotted as of Friday, trade sources said.
Speculation about the refinery's production issues had spurred a short-lived recovery in Asia's VLSFO market. The rally has pared though the market retains a close watch on whether the refinery units could ramp up by the end of this month.
"VLSFO cracks will be mainly driven by developments in Al Zour. We foresee VLSFO cracks to remain elevated till issues in Al-Zour are resolved and production resumes," said Ivan Mathews, head of fuel oil and refining at consultancy FGE.
Meanwhile, Singapore's VLSFO cash premium edged higher day-on-day to $3 a tonne over Singapore quotes, as a firmer trade emerged for May-loading product.
SINGAPORE BUNKER SALES
Singapore bunker fuel sales recovered at Singapore in March after a lacklustre February, as vessel calls for bunkering reached more than two-year highs, official data showed Friday. The sales rose to 4.18 million tonnes, up 10% month on month and 11% from a year earlier, Maritime and Port Authority data showed. The rise reflected increasing vessel calls for bunkering, which hit more than two-year highs at 3,476 calls in March.
ARA INVENTORIES Fuel oil inventories in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) refining and storage hub slid 6% to 1.18 million tonnes in the week ended April 13, data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global showed. OTHER NEWS - Oil prices rose on Friday after the West's energy watchdog said it expected global demand to rise to a record high this year on the back of a recovery in Chinese consumption. - OPEC on Thursday flagged downside risks to summer oil demand as part of the backdrop to output cuts announced this month by OPEC+ producers, shedding some light on the factors behind the surprise move that has led to a rise in oil prices - Several Asian refiners are likely to maximise gasoline output from May and reduce gasoil output, cashing in on higher profits for the motor fuel ahead of the peak summer driving season, industry sources and analysts say. - Taiwan's Formosa Petrochemical Corp (FPCC) will increase its refinery run rate in May to around 480,000 barrels per day (bpd), slightly lower than earlier plan, after completing maintenance, a company spokesperson said on Friday.
WINDOW TRADES - 180-cst HSFO: Two trades - 380-cst HSFO: One trade - 0.5% VLSFO: One trade
ASSESSMENTS
FUEL OIL
CASH ($/T) ASIA CLOSE CHANGE PREV CLOSE RIC
Cargo - 0.5% VLSFO 596.53 -5.31 601.84 Diff - 0.5% VLSFO 3.00 0.50 2.50 Cargo - 180cst 474.70 -8.47 483.17 Diff - 180cst 2.29 -0.26 2.55 Cargo - 380cst 474.56 -8.55 483.11 Diff - 380cst 5.77 0.22 5.55 Bunker (Ex-wharf) Premium - 380cst 12.00 0.00 12.00
Bunker (Ex-wharf) Premium - 0.5% VLSFO 8.50 0.50 8.00
For a list of derivatives prices, including
margins, please double click the RICs below.
Brent M1 180cst M1 180cst M1/M2 180cst M2 Visco M1 Visco M2 380cst M1 380cst M1/M2 380cst M2 Cracks 180-Dubai M1 Cracks 180-Dubai M2 East-West M1 East-West M2 Barges M1 Barges M1/M2 Barges M2 Crack Barges-Brent M1 Crack Barges-Brent M2 (Reporting by Jeslyn Lerh; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
