East of Suez Market Update 21 Jan

Prices in East of Suez ports have moved in mixed directions, and prompt availability of all grades is tight in the UAE ports of Fujairah and Khor Fakkan.

IMAGE: Fujairah Oil Tanker Terminals, which store and handle liquid bulk cargo in the port. Port of Fujairah

Changes on the day to 17.00 SGT (09.00 GMT) today:

• VLSFO prices up in Zhoushan ($1/mt), and down in Fujairah ($4/mt) and Singapore ($1/mt)
• LSMGO prices up in Fujairah ($9/mt), Zhoushan ($5/mt), and unchanged in Singapore
• HSFO prices up in Fujairah ($1/mt), and down in Singapore ($6/mt) and Zhoushan ($1/mt)
• B30-VLSFO prices down in Fujairah ($5/mt) and Singapore ($2/mt)

VLSFO prices across the three major Asian bunker ports have remained broadly rangebound over the past day. Fujairah’s VLSFO price is at discounts of $34/mt to Zhoushan and $10/mt to Singapore.

LSMGO prices have increased by $9/mt in Fujairah and $5/mt in Zhoushan, while the grade's price in Singapore has remained broadly steady. Fujairah’s LSMGO continues to trade at premiums of $116/mt over Singapore and $75/mt over Zhoushan.

Prompt bunker availability in Fujairah remains tight across all grades, with several suppliers operating on constrained delivery schedules. Most are quoting lead times of 5–7 days, although a few suppliers can still arrange urgent stems at a premium, according to a source. Similar supply conditions are being reported in Khor Fakkan.

Adverse weather is forecast in both Fujairah and Khor Fakkan between 21–22 January, which is expected to disrupt bunker delivery operations.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has inched $0.08/bbl up on the day, to trade at $63.76/bbl at 17.00 SGT (09.00 GMT) today.

Upward pressure:

Renewed supply disruption issues have supported Brent’s price gains today.

OPEC member Kazakhstan’s largest oil producer has halted production at the Tengiz and Korolevskoye fields, as precautionary measures, after two fires broke out at power generators, Reuters reported.

The Tengiz oilfield is expected to remain shut for at least 10 days, the report added. The closure is expected to cut crude oil exports via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CTC). 

“This [production halt] comes after Kazakhstan reduced oil production after drone strikes affected the Caspian Pipeline Consortium’s shipping terminal in Russia, which is the outlet for about 80% of Kazak exports,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes said.

The OPEC producer’s crude production in the first 12 days of January was down by almost 35% from average daily output in December 2025, according to Reuters.

Downward pressure:

Brent crude has come under some downward pressure as renewed trade tensions between the US and Europe weighed on market sentiment.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose 10% tariffs on several European countries from 1 February, after they opposed US' control of Greenland.

Washington would raise the levy to 25% from 1 June, unless an agreement is reached on what he described as the “complete and total purchase of Greenland” by the US.

Analysts caution that an escalation in trade barriers could undermine global economic growth, weakening oil demand and adding further downside pressure to prices.

By Tuhin Roy and Aparupa Mazumder

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