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Independent refiners in the north of China have made a rare purchase of 320,000 metric tonnes of fuel oil from Singapore as they continue to look for alternative product sources whilst Japan continues to outbid them for Russian fuel oil cargoes.

This is the first time in almost 12 months that refiners in the north of China have bought fuel oil cargoes from the Singapore market, according to market sources. Approximately 550,000 tonnes of fuel oil was imported from Singapore in March, most of which was sent to the south of China. If independent refiners in the north continue to source their product from Singapore, Chinese imports of fuel oil could top 800,000 tonnes, traders said.

The four cargoes of fuel oil have been loaded over the past two weeks for arrival in May, according to Reuters. The product is said to be a mix of Iranian 280 centistoke fuel oil and Sudan's Dar Blend crude oil, which when blended is close to Russian-grade M100 fuel oil.

Approximately 500,000 metric tonnes of M100 fuel oil is said to be exported by refineries in Russia's Far East on a monthly basis. At least two Japanese refineries have already begun using straight-run M100 fuel oil from Russia. Earlier this month, ExxonMobil Japan was reported to have negotiated a deal with oil trading firm Vitol for the supply of 120,000 - 140,000 metric tonnes of M100 per month for the next six months.

Fuel oil imports into Japan have soared from 40,000 a month in the first quarter of 2007 to a record high of 250,000 in December last year, according to government data. The figure remained high at 140,000 tonnes in February, with high demand for Russian fuel oil pushing up the price from $45-$50 a tonne in December 2007 to $70-75 a tonne.

Meanwhile, Russian fuel oil imports into China fell about 60 percent to 150,000 tonnes in March 2008 as Chinese traders are forced to look for alternative product sources, primarily from Iran, whilst their Japanese counterparts continue to import Russian fuel oil in large volumes.