East of Suez Market Update 13 Feb

Prices in East of Suez ports have moved down, and bad weather could impact bunkering across several South Korean ports in the coming days.

IMAGE: Tugboat helps to turn around a large container ship on its way out of the Port of Busan, South Korea. Getty Images

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

• VLSFO prices down in Zhoushan ($15/mt), Singapore and Fujairah ($9/mt)
• LSMGO prices down in Zhoushan ($17/mt), Fujairah ($16/mt) and Singapore ($14/mt)
• HSFO prices down in Zhoushan ($13/mt), Singapore and Fujairah ($8/mt)
• B30-VLSFO prices down in Singapore ($7/mt) and Fujairah ($6/mt)

VLSFO prices across the three major Asian ports have declined by $9–15/mt over the past day, with Zhoushan recording the steepest drop. Despite this fall, Zhoushan’s VLSFO continues to trade at premiums of $32/mt over Fujairah and $19/mt over Singapore.

Zhoushan’s HSFO price has also decreased by $13/mt — the largest decline among the three ports. Even so, the HSFO price in Zhoushan remains at premiums of $53/mt over Fujairah and $33/mt over Singapore.

Supply conditions in Zhoushan have tightened despite muted demand. Several suppliers are now quoting VLSFO lead times of 7–10 days, up from around five days last week. HSFO deliveries require 7–10 days as well, compared with about seven days previously.

In South Korea, most suppliers are quoting lead times of 7–8 days for all bunker grades, narrowing from last week’s broader range of 3–8 days. Ongoing harsh winter weather continues to pose a risk of operational disruptions. Weather-related interruptions could impact bunkering in Busan, Ulsan and Yeosu between 13–15 February, while Daesan may face disruptions from 15–16 February.

Bunkering activity is expected to remain subdued during the Lunar New Year (Seollal) holiday period from 16–18 February, as barge operations are likely to be suspended, though this may vary depending on the supplier, according to a trader.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has declined by $2.18/bbl on the day, to trade at $67.59/bbl at 17.00 SGT (09.00 GMT) today.

Upward pressure:

In its latest monthly market report, the Saudi Arabia-led OPEC group has maintained its 2026 global oil demand growth forecast at 1.4 million b/d, with total demand expected to average 106.52 million b/d for the year.

ING Bank analysts noted that OPEC’s projections remain above most other demand growth forecasts.

This comparatively stronger outlook has lent some support to Brent futures.

Downward pressure:

Oil prices have declined on receding concerns about US-Iran conflict that could affect supply.

US President Donald Trump commented on Thursday that the US could make a deal with Iran over the next month, according to Reuters.

“Prices fell… after traders pared back the Iran war premium, following comments from US President Donald Trump that significantly lowered the perceived threat of an imminent strike on the Islamic Republic,” said Vandana Hari, founder of VANDA Insights.

“Easing geopolitical tensions also weighed on the market,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes echoed.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) on Thursday projected in its monthly report that this year global oil demand growth will be weaker than previously expected, with overall supply set to exceed demand. This has added further downward pressure on oil prices.

IEA now expects global oil demand to grow by 850,000 b/d in 2026 - about 80,000 b/d lower than its previous estimate.

“Sentiment wasn’t helped by a bearish outlook from the International Energy Agency,” ANZ Bank’s Hynes commented.

Brent crude’s price has also been weighed down after the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a big rise in US crude stocks.

Commercial US crude oil inventories increased by 8.5 million bbls to 428.8 million bbls for the week ending 6 February, according to data from the EIA.

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

By Tuhin Roy

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