Americas Market Update 26 June

Fuel prices have moved in mixed directions, and rough weather is expected to cause delays at GOLA.

IMAGE: Aerial view of dry docks and shipping containers in New York. Getty Images.

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

• VLSFO prices up in Zona Comun ($7/mt), Balboa, Houston ($5/mt) and New York ($1/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($8/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Zona Comun ($30/mt), Balboa ($16/mt), Houston ($6/mt) and New York ($2/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($9/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Balboa ($2/mt), and down in Los Angeles ($6/mt), Houston and New York ($4/mt)

Houston's VLSFO price has increased over the past day, while the port's HSFO price declined, widening the port's Hi5 spread to $109/mt today.

The port's VLSFO price is currently at a discount of $36/mt to New York.

On the East Coast, New York has seen strong bunker demand this week. Availability of all three conventional fuel grades has improved with some suppliers, while others are facing resupply challenges, a source said.

VLSFO and HSFO require lead times of 5-6 days, while LSMGO can be delivered within 2-3 days.

Bunkering operations at the Galveston Offshore Lightering Area (GOLA) are expected to face delays until 29 June due to high wind gusts and elevated sea conditions.

All three fuel grades can be delivered within 5-8 days, a trader told ENGINE.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has lost $0.12/bbl on the day, to trade at $72.74/bbl at 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT) today.

Upward pressure:

Brent crude has drawn some upward thrust as regional skirmish continued between Israel and Lebanon, with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) targeting the Zawtar al-Sharqiya region in southern Lebanon, it said on social media platform X.

The news emerges as a significant threat to the durability of the US-Iran interim agreement, as Tehran has conditioned its commitment to the peace deal, only after a complete cessation of military operations in Lebanon.

Meanwhile, a cargo vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz was struck by an unknown projectile off the coast of Oman yesterday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported.

“Oil bounced back yesterday after a vessel was struck in the Persian Gulf,” two analysts from ING Bank noted.

The attack occurred shortly after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy warned commercial vessels against using unauthorised routes through the region.

The attack “highlighted the fragile state of the ceasefire, while also demonstrating the risks facing vessels in the Persian Gulf,” ING Bank’s analysts added.

Downward pressure:

Brent’s price has felt some downward pressure as the oil market focused on the resumption of oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

Oil is flowing through the Persian Gulf at the “fastest pace” since the beginning of the Middle East conflict on 28 February, according to ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes.

Cargo tracking platform Kpler reports dry bulk carrier transits through the strait have increased from one or two ships a week, to more than 10 a day in the week to 24 June, since the interim US-Iran peace deal was signed in France.

“[Oil] market momentum still appears to be largely downward,” ING Bank’s analysts said.

By Gautamee Hazarika and Aparupa Mazumder

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