Singapore's fuel oil stocks in the week ended June 19 rose to a 39-month high as exports of the heavy distillate -- particularly into China and Hong Kong -- plunged from the previous week, data released Thursday by trade promotion agency IE Singapore showed.
Total stocks of heavy distillates, which IE Singapore describes as residues, and include cracked and straight-run fuel oil and low sulfur waxy residue, rose 9% week on week to 24.36 million barrels, or 3.84 million mt. Singapore's weekly fuel oil stocks was last higher in the week ended March 10, 2010, when they stood at 24.38 million barrels, the data showed. The rise in stocks last week was largely due to a near 58% week-on-week drop in exports, which stood at 299,258 mt on June 19.
The slump in exports over June 13-19 was due to China and Hong Kong dropping off the list of export destinations. In comparison, about 39% of total fuel oil exports in the week ended June 12, or 277,213 mt, went to China and Hong Kong.
In addition, Malaysia, which accounted for almost 52% -- or 363,948 mt -- of total exports from Singapore in the week ended June 12, imported only 91,984 mt, or around 31% of total, over June 13-19.
Meanwhile, imports into Singapore in the week ended June 19 fell 8.9% to 1.42 million mt, from 1.56 million mt June 12. The fall in imports was due to a lack of shipments from Saudi Arabia, which accounted for 21%, or 326,119 mt, of Singapore's total fuel oil imports in the previous week.
Imports from Russia over June 13-19 were also negligible at 6,896 mt, down almost 98% from 309,503 mt in the week ended June 12.
But shipments from the US, Venezuela and Netherlands -- at a combined 744,762 mt -- accounted for 52.5% of total imports. In comparison, the US and Venezuela accounted for just 15%, or 234,688 mt, of Singapore's total fuel oil imports in the previous week, while there were no imports from the Netherlands.
Some Singapore-based fuel oil traders have said that the recent surge in viscosity spread -- the price difference between 180 CST high sulfur fuel oil and 380 CST HSFO -- may be attributed to demand for the lower viscosity product as a blendstock given a fair share of very high viscosity material -- especially from the Americas -- that have arrived and are still coming into Singapore in June and July.
The FOB Singapore 180 CST/380 CST HSFO spread rose 65 cents/mt from Wednesday to a 61-month high of $28.24/mt at the Asian close Thursday. The spread was last higher on May 22, 2008, at $29.62/mt, Platts data showed.
