Singapore Fuel Oil Inventories Up 10% This Month

Changes in monthly average Singapore stocks from July to August (so far):

• Residual fuel oil stocks up 1.98 million bbls to 21.39 million bbls
• Middle distillate stocks down 100,000 bbls to 7.56 million bbls

Singapore’s net fuel oil imports have fallen by 12% so far in August. Both imports and exports of fuel oil have declined this month. The Southeast Asian bunker hub’s fuel oil imports have slumped by 11% so far this month, while its exports have declined 10%.

According to cargo tracker Vortexa, HSFO cargoes have primarily arrived from the UAE (46%) so far this month, followed by Russia (17%) and Malaysia (14%).

The bulk of LSFO has come from Brazil (37%) – typically its top import source. Netherlands (10%) and Russia (7%) have been the port’s second and third biggest LSFO import sources in August.

The majority of HSFO cargoes departing from Singapore have been bound for Bangladesh (50%), South Korea (14%) and Malaysia (13%). LSFO cargoes out of the Southeast Asian bunker hub have headed for China (31%), Malaysia (14%) and Taiwan (12%).

On the other hand, Singapore’s middle distillate stocks have averaged 1% lower so far this month than in July.

Singapore fuel oil imports and exports since January 2020

Changes in Singapore fuel oil trade from July to August (so far):

• Fuel oil imports down 720,000 bbls to 5.66 million bbls
• Fuel oil exports down 164,000 bbls to 1.47 million bbls
• Fuel oil net imports down 556,000 bbls to 4.20 million bbls

Securing prompt VLSFO stems can be difficult in Singapore, with most suppliers recommending lead times of around 7-11 days – double from 3-5 days last week. Lead times for HSFO deliveries, on the other hand, have shrunk from 9-11 days last week to 6-8 days now. LSMGO remains readily available for prompt supply.