SINGAPORE: The spot market for high sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) remained under pressure on Thursday as Russian supplies continued to flood the East of Suez region, ahead of the European Union’s Feb. 5 embargo on refined products.
The 180-cst HSFO cash differential fell to a discount of $3.51 a tonne to Singapore quotes, while the 380-cst HSFO cash differential dipped to a premium of 46 cents on Thursday.
Russian imports into landed storage at Singapore rose to 91,000 tonnes in the week to Feb. 1, latest official data showed.
Total landed stocks at Singapore rebounded after declining for three straight weeks, with the increase led by an uptick in supplies from Brazil, Indonesia and Kuwait, the data showed.
Western arbitrage supplies have been firm in January, though the trend could slow down a little into the second half of February, trade sources said.
The spot cash premium for 0.5% very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) steadied on Thursday after striking a six-month high in the previous day. Onshore fuel oil stocks rose 6% to a three-week high of 20.71 million barrels (3.26 million tonnes) in the week ended Feb. 1, Enterprise Singapore data showed Thursday.
Weekly net imports climbed 85% to 697,000 tonnes in the same week, as Western and regional Asian supplies picked up into end-January. Oil prices were steady on Thursday as a weaker dollar boosted sentiment, though looming sanctions on Russian oil products added uncertainty over supply.
EU countries will seek a deal on Friday on a European Commission proposal to set price caps on Russian oil products, after postponing a decision on Wednesday amid divisions between member states, diplomats said.
South Korean refiner Hyundai Oilbank plans to shut down one of its two crude distillation units (CDU) and one residue fluidiser catalytic cracker (RFCC) in August, several industry sources said on Thursday.
Gasoline consumption and imports in Indonesia, Asia’s largest importer of the motor fuel, could hit records this year as the nation recovers from COVID-related travel curbs, although growth is expected to slow slightly along with its economy.
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