Americas Market Update 13 July

Fuel prices have mostly gained, and adverse weather could cause bunker delivery delays off Trinidad.

IMAGE: Container loading area in the port of Balboa. Getty Images.

Changes on the day from Friday to 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT) today:

• VLSFO prices up in Zona Comun ($54/mt), Balboa ($52/mt), Los Angeles ($25/mt), New York ($22/mt) and Houston ($18/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Houston ($71/mt), New York ($60/mt), Balboa ($46/mt), Los Angeles ($44/mt) and Zona Comun ($43/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Houston ($29/mt), Los Angeles ($23/mt) and New York ($10/mt), and down in Balboa ($13/mt)

Fuel prices have mostly tracked Brent's upward movement and have increased over the past session, except for Balboa's HSFO benchmark.

Balboa's HSFO price has recorded a decline after two lower-priced stems of 50-150 mt and 500-1,500 mt, fixed at $570/mt and $557/mt respectively over the weekend, pushed the benchmark down.

The port's VLSFO price, meanwhile, has increased, widening Balboa's Hi5 spread to $75/mt, from $10/mt on Friday.

In Panama's Balboa, VLSFO and LSMGO are available for delivery dates around a week out with one supplier.

Off Trinidad, a period of disruption is expected between 13-17 July, and bunker deliveries are expected to face delays due to high seas and strong wind gusts in the region, a source said.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has gained $2.17/bbl on the day from Friday, to trade at $78.58/bbl at 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT) today.

Upward pressure:

Brent’s price has climbed amid renewed hostilities in the Middle East – effectively shattering the temporary 60-day peace accord.

Another container vessel came under an Iranian missile attack off Oman’s coast yesterday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) responded to the attack with strikes against 140 Iranian military targets, including missile and drone sites, naval capabilities, ammunition storage facilities and more.

The repeated attacks on commercial vessels have shattered the region’s fragile stability, with the recent escalation effectively throwing cold water on the now-defunct peace talks.

“There was no visible traffic in the strait on Sunday,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes said. “The maritime security threat remains severe,” he added.

Downward pressure:

While Brent’s price faces no immediate downward pressure today, market participants remain wary of weakening global crude oil demand.

The Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) expects global oil demand to decline by 1 million b/d in 2026 – stopping short of providing an average global oil demand forecast.

The IEA expects oil demand to decline this year, as the ripple effects of the Middle East geopolitical unrest continue to impact various products and regions.

By Gautamee Hazarika and Aparupa Mazumder

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