Americas Market Update 20 Apr

Bunker fuel prices have moved in mixed directions, and deliveries in GOLA are expected to face delays due to rough weather.

IMAGE: Vessel docked in the Port of Houston in the US. Port of Houston.

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

• VLSFO prices up in New York ($44/mt), Houston ($26/mt) and Balboa ($25/mt), and down in Zona Comun ($36/mt)
  
• LSMGO prices up in Balboa ($84/mt), Zona Comun ($38/mt) and New York ($34/mt), and down in Houston ($74/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Balboa ($70/mt), Houston ($23/mt) and New York ($18/mt)

Houston's LSMGO price has been the only benchmark to decrease in the past session, while other key hubs have recorded gains for the grade.

The grade's benchmark could have been pressured by a lower-priced 500–1500 mt LSMGO stem, fixed at $968/mt, which put downward pressure on the benchmark.

At the Port of Houston, bunker demand is normal with lead times for VLSFO and HSFO currently at around 5–7 days. LSMGO is available more promptly at 3–4 days, a source said.

In the nearby anchorage location of Galveston Offshore Lightering Area (GOLA), bunkering operations have been disrupted due to high wind gusts and high seas. Delays at the anchorage are expected until tomorrow, a trader said.

In Balboa, the port's HSFO price has shot up and is currently at premiums of $202/mt to Cartagena in Colombia and $20mt to Guayaquil in Ecuador.

Lead times are 3–5 days for VLSFO and LSMGO, and 4–6 days for HSFO at the port.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has gained $3.86/bbl on the day from Friday, to trade at $95.06/bbl at 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT) today.

Upward pressure:

Brent crude’s price has opened the week higher, clawing back some previous losses, after the US Navy said it has seized another Iranian vessel attempting to enter an Iranian port, undermining the US blockade.

Iranian-flagged cargo vessel M/V Touska was moving towards Iran’s Bandar Abbas port when it was seized by US forces, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) reported.

This news has “rekindled market concerns of further escalation in the Middle East conflict, undermining any fresh ceasefire talks between the two nations,” two analysts from ING Bank noted.

Downward pressure:

The US and Iran are scheduled to resume negotiations today in Islamabad, Pakistan – in another attempt to reach a ceasefire deal, according to media reports.

Although Iran has not confirmed its presence in today’s meeting, Brent’s price has felt downward pressure following the news.

Brent’s losses follow a sharp sell-off on Friday, triggered by Iranian foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi's announcement on X that the Strait of Hormuz will be fully reopened to commercial vessels.

US President Donald Trump welcomed the news in a post on social media platform Truth Social, adding that the US naval blockade of Iranian ports will remain in effect until negotiations with Tehran are “100% complete”.

“The oil market continues to edge lower amid hopes that the US and Iran extend their ceasefire by another two weeks, along with a potential resumption in talks to bring an end to the war,” ING Bank’s analysts added.

By Gautamee Hazarika and Aparupa Mazumder

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