A Surprising Downward Trend in Bunker Fuel Market
Monday witnessed a surprising pattern – the global prices of Very Low Sulfur Fuel Oil (VLSFO), an essential in ships and bunkers, took a downward plunge. This was the first drop in prices observed in four back-to-back sessions. Ship & Bunker’s G20-VLSFO Index, monitoring prices across twenty major bunkering ports, experienced a decrease – it fell from $6/metric tonne (mt) and bottomed out at $596.50/mt. This drop brought prices to the lowest observed since July 11.
Other Fuel Types Also Experience a Price Dip
This trend wasn’t limited to the VLSFO. Other fuels, the high sulfur fuel oil (HSFO) and marine gas oil (MGO), tracked by the G20 index followed suit. The HSFO index reported a slight drop – prices fell by $2/mt ending at $518.50/mt. The MGO index also experienced a mild drop, pricing lower by $1.50/metric tonne and closing at $812.50/mt.
Global Crude Futures Reflect Similar Patterns
These fluctuations in VLSFO, HSFO, and MGO prices saw a mirror reflection in the ICE Brent crude futures as well. The beginning of the week marked a decrease of $1.37/barrel, resulting in a price point of $78.50/barrel.
Detailed Port-based Bunker Fuel Pricing
A deeper dive into the port-wise pricing gives us a clear view of the overall trends. In Singapore, prices decreased considerably, falling by $7.50/mt and settling at $574/mt. In Rotterdam, a similar reduction was noted, with fuel prices falling by $12/mt to reach $546.50/mt. Fujairah noted a price cut of $9.50/mt, to end at $566/mt, while Houston saw a drop of $4/mt, with the final tally at $560/mt.
Early Tuesday morning saw Brent crude futures picking up lightly by $0.02/barrel, indicating a price of $78.52/barrel at 10:11 AM London time. This slight increase telegraphs into a rise of $0.15/mt for bunker prices when translated into metric tonne equivalents.
Navigating the waves of the bunker fuel market can be complex, but with detailed pricing trends across key ports and types of fuel, stakeholders can be better prepared to ride through the ups and downs of this volatile market.
