Americas Market Update 24 Aug

Fuel prices have moved in mixed directions, and possible delays are expected in Zona Comun.

IMAGE: Cranes and shipping containers at a port in Argentina. Getty Images

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

• VLSFO prices up in Balboa ($11/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($40/mt), New York ($23/mt), Zona Comun ($15/mt) and Houston ($13/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Balboa ($9/mt) and New York ($4/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($24/mt), Houston ($16/mt) and Zona Comun ($1/mt)
• HSFO prices up Balboa ($27/mt) and New York ($3/mt), and down in Houston ($21/mt) and Los Angeles ($2/mt)

New York's VLSFO price has declined over the past session after a lower-priced 150-500 mt stem, fixed at $736/mt, has put downward pressure on the benchmark.

In New York, demand has remained steady for both HSFO and LSMGO this week.

The recommended lead times for HSFO and VLSFO are 5-7 days. LSMGO is more widely available and can be supplied within 2-3 days.

Weather conditions at the port remain normal, with winds blowing at 5–10 knots and waves reaching 1–2 feet.

In Zona Comun, VLSFO and LSMGO prices have both declined at the anchorage. Delays are expected at the port due to high wind gusts in the region, a source said.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has lost by $0.58/bbl on the day from Friday, trading at $93.21/bbl at 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT) today.

Upward pressure:

Brent crude’s price has opened this week trading above $90/bbl, as market participants anticipate US' economic sanctions against Iran.

The US treasury secretary Scott Bessent will hold a press conference at 18.00 GMT today, to announce economic measures against Iran.

His comments follow shortly after US President Donald Trump vowed sweeping sanctions on Iran and its allies.

Bessent has called the move an “economic D-Day” for Tehran, putting upward pressure on Brent crude’s price.

Brent crude’s price has found support “as expectations of a near-term resolution to the Middle East conflict faded,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes said.

Downward pressure:

While there is no new downward pressure acting on Brent, market participants will keep an eye out for US crude stocks data, scheduled to come out later this week.

Commercial US crude oil inventories increased by 4.4 million bbls to 429 million bbls in the week ending 14 August, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

A build in US crude stocks typically indicates lower demand for oil and can put some downward pressure on Brent's price.

By Gautamee Hazarika and Aparupa Mazumder

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