Europe & Africa Market Update 17 Dec

Bunker fuel prices in major European and African ports have moved in mixed directions, and fuel availability remains normal off Malta.

IMAGE: Tankers during a bunker operation off Malta. Getty Images

Changes on the day to 09.00 GMT today:

• VLSFO prices up in Durban ($5/mt) and Rotterdam ($4/mt), and down in Gibraltar ($3/mt)
• LSMGO prices down in Gibraltar ($18/mt) and Rotterdam ($17/mt)
• HSFO prices up in Durban ($4/mt), Gibraltar ($3/mt) and Rotterdam ($1/mt)
• Rotterdam B30-VLSFO premium over VLSFO down $6/mt to $239/mt
• Gibraltar B30-VLSFO premium over VLSFO up $14/mt to $363/mt

LSMGO prices at Rotterdam and Gibraltar have recorded steep declines in the past session.

A lower-priced 150-500 mt stem, fixed in Rotterdam at $581/mt, may have potentially weighed down on the benchmark at the port.

The LSMGO price off Malta has also seen a significant $12/mt fall, probably influenced by a lower-priced 150-500 mt stem fixed at $619/mt, which has exerted downward pressure on the benchmark.

Bunker availability remains stable off Malta amid low December demand, with all fuel grades available promptly with a notice of lesser than 3 days, a trader told ENGINE.

Brent

The front-month ICE Brent contract has gained by $0.47/bbl on the day, to trade at $60.30/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

Upward pressure:

Brent crude’s price has erased earlier losses and climbed back above the $60/bbl mark after Washington tightened sanctions on Venezuela.

US President Donald Trump has declared a complete ban on sanctioned oil tankers carrying Venezuelan oil.

Washington has “positioned warships, aircraft and troops near Venezuela’s coast,” according to ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes.

The development comes amid heightened tension between the two oil-producing nations after the US intercepted a sanctioned oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast and sanctioned six additional vessels accused of carrying Venezuelan oil last week.

“Crude futures were staging modest gains… after US President Donald Trump designated the Venezuelan government a 'terrorist organisation'," remarked VANDA Insights’ founder Vandana Hari.

Downward pressure:

Brent’s gains have been capped by progress in Russia-Ukraine ceasefire talks, as market analysts say a deal could ease energy-related sanctions on Moscow and return additional barrels to a global market already facing oversupply concerns.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier this week that peace talks with the US had made progress and that an agreement could be reached soon, according to media reports.

“The end to the Russia-Ukraine war brings with it the prospect of Russian crude flowing onto a market that is already seeing rising supply from major producers such as OPEC,” Hynes said.

By Nachiket Tekawade and Aparupa Mazumder

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