Tue 1 May 2018, 08:55 GMT

Oil and fuel oil hedging market update


By the Oil Desk at Freight Investor Services.



Commentary

London Brent crude for new July delivery was up 21 cents at $74.90. The June contract expired on Monday, settling up 53 cents at $75.17. U.S. WTI crude for June delivery was up 24 cents, or 0.4 percent, at $68.81 a barrel by 04:02 GMT, after settling up 47 cents on Monday. Like that kid in school who no one wants to hang out with, it seems that the U.K. is the only place (together with the Netherlands and much of the Middle East) currently not on holiday, only waiting for its bigger brother the U.S. to come in later to save us. Netanyahu has stuck his oar in on Iran sanctions - no geopolitical surprise there. The only question now is whether this will sway Trump, give him the excuse he needs, or will moderation win out when it comes to the actual decision next week?

Fuel Oil Market (April 30)

The front crack opened at -12.50, strengthening to -12.45, before weakening to -13.20. The Cal 19 was valued at - 16.65

Ex-wharf cash premiums of 380 cSt fuel oil eased from their recent highs as supply constrains showed some signs of easing over the near term but the downside was limited by berth congestion as suppliers worked to clear a backlog of demand and limited overall supplies of finished grade fuel oil, trade sources said.

Ex-wharf premiums of 380 Sst fuel oil eased to about $5- $6 a tonne to Singapore quotes on Monday, down from about $9-$10 a tonne on Friday. However, firm demand for cutter stock supplies helped boost the viscosity spread higher to about $12.75 a tonne, while tight overall supplies in Singapore helped widen the front-month arbitrage spread to about $15.25 a tonne, broker sources said.

Economic Data and Events: (Times are London.)

* Labor Day holiday in many parts of world, including China, Korea, Russia, Germany, France, Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Iraq, Nigeria, India, Brazil, Argentina, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore

* OPEC April production estimate based on Bloomberg survey

* Bloomberg to start publishing monthly crude export estimates for April for key OPEC nations based on tanker-tracking analysis

* EARNINGS: BP Plc, Marathon Petroleum, Anadarko Petroleum

Singapore 380 cSt

Jun18 - 401.25 / 403.25

Jul18 - 397.50 / 399.50

Aug18 - 395.00 / 397.00

Sep18 - 392.25 / 394.25

Oct18 - 389.25 / 391.25

Nov18 - 386.25 / 388.25

Q3-18 - 394.75 / 396.75

Q4-18 - 386.25 / 388.25

Q1-19 - 375.75 / 378.25

Q2-19 - 365.25 / 367.75

CAL19 - 341.50 / 344.50

CAL20 - 275.75 / 280.75

Singapore 180 cSt

Jun18 - 413.00 / 415.00

Jul18 - 409.25 / 411.25

Aug18 - 406.50 / 408.50

Sep18 - 403.50 / 405.50

Oct18 - 400.50 / 402.50

Nov18 - 397.25 / 399.25

Q3-18 - 406.25 / 408.25

Q4-18 - 397.50 / 399.50

Q1-19 - 387.25 / 389.75

Q2-19 - 377.00 / 379.50

CAL19 - 355.75 / 358.75

CAL20 - 299.75 / 304.75

Rotterdam Barges

Jun18 - 386.25 / 388.25

Jul18 - 383.50 / 385.50

Aug18 - 380.75 / 382.75

Sep18 - 377.50 / 379.50

Oct18 - 373.50 / 375.50

Nov18 - 369.25 / 371.25

Q3-18 - 380.50 / 382.50

Q4-18 - 368.50 / 370.50

Q1-19 - 358.50 / 361.00

Q2-19 - 346.00 / 348.50

CAL19 - 321.25 / 324.25

CAL20 - 250.25 / 255.25

BP  

Kuehne+Nagel logo. Kuehne+Nagel seeks marine energy pricing analyst in Greece  

Logistics firm recruiting for role focused on bunker pricing formulas and compliance cost analysis.

Fulvio Astengo, LD Ports & Logistics. LD Armateurs to present floating ammonia terminal concept at London energy conference  

French shipowner to showcase FRESH platform design for offshore hydrogen and ammonia supply chains.

NACKS bulk carriers with rotor sails. Anemoi rotor sails complete eight years of operation on bulk carrier M/V Afros  

Lloyd’s Register survey finds no operational issues with wind propulsion system after extended service.

Mikkel Kannegaard, Bunker Holding. Bunker Holding promotes Mikkel Kannegaard to chief operating officer  

Kannegaard has led transformation of supply organisation since joining in August 2025.

London skyline. Uni-Fuels seeks general manager for London bunker trading desk  

Nasdaq-listed marine fuel supplier recruits for commercial leadership role with P&L responsibility.

VPS logo. NE Atlantic ECA will cause significant change to the current fuel mix | Steve Bee, VPS  

The possibility of off-spec issues highlights the continuing need for proactive fuel testing to protect vessels.

Kris Vedat, SmartSea. Smart ships failing to convert data into actionable intelligence, warns SmartSea  

Maritime technology firm claims vessels collect vast amounts of data but lack integration to support decision-making.

Energy Transition Outlook 2026 Hydrogen To 2060 report cover. DNV forecasts 100-fold growth in clean hydrogen by 2060, with China leading expansion  

Classification society projects $3.2tn investment in hydrogen sector, with maritime accounting for 15% of clean hydrogen use.

World Shipping Council logo. Dual-fuel container ship and vehicle carrier fleet surpasses 1,200 vessels  

World Shipping Council reports 65% year-on-year increase in operational dual-fuel vessels to 440 ships.

Sotiris Raptis, ECSA. European Shipowners calls for ETS revenue investment and fuel supplier mandate  

ECSA urges the EU to invest €9bn in annual ETS revenues in fuel production and infrastructure.