Asia’s refining cracks for very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) posted weekly gains of more than 25% on Friday, led by a recent rebound in spot market sentiment.
The front-month crack for 0.5% VLSFO was at a premium of $17.58 a barrel to Dubai quotes at Friday’s Asia close (0830 GMT), hitting two-month highs.
The uptick was led by a recent rally in spot market premiums, which have been hovering near five-month highs since last week.
The talk of potential supply tightness in February spurred the rally, though its strength eased slightly in recent sessions, with some trade sources saying the gains were likely to be temporary.
Meanwhile, cracks for high sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) were also slightly firmer. The front-month 180-cst HSFO crack was at a discount of 18.33 a barrel on Friday, climbing by about 5% from the previous week.
ARA INVENTORIES (STK-FO-ARA)
Fuel oil inventories in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) refining and storage hub fell 2% to 1.12 million tonnes in the week ended Jan. 26, latest data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global showed.
OTHER NEWS
WINDOW TRADES
– 180-cst HSFO: No trade
– 380-cst HSFO: Two trades
– 0.5% VLSFO: No trade
Source: Hellenic Shipping News
