Platts amends minimum increments in Singapore HSFO, MF0.5% cargo MOC

S&P Global Platts has amended the increment in the Market on Close assessment process for Singapore high sulfur fuel oil and Marine Fuel 0.5% cargoes to a minimum of 5 cents/mt every minute from January 2, 2019.

Previously, the minimum price increment for physical bids and offers for HSFO and MF0.5% cargoes in the MOC was 25 cents/mt every minute. The maximum increment remains unchanged at $1/mt per minute.

Platts first proposed changing the minimum increments in a subscriber note published November 15: www.spglobal.com

The change is aimed at bringing greater granularity to the MOC assessment process that is used to assess benchmark 380 CST HSFO, 180 CST HSFO and Marine Fuel 0.5% assessments and applies to all fixed price and floating price bids and offers published during the process.

The change aligns the minimum price increment guidelines for the physical cargo bids and offers to match those for the respective derivatives. Effective July 2017, Platts changed the minimum increment for fuel oil derivatives to 5 cents/mt every 10 seconds.

The faster increment timings for cargoes allows market participants to adapt more quickly to volatility in the global crude oil, products and derivatives markets that may have a bearing on prices of HSFO and MF0.5% fuels.

Platts typically assesses fuel oil prices to the nearest 5 cents/mt. The decision to reflect smaller increments allows market participants to demonstrate value to the same level of granularity.

Platts timing and increment guidelines are a key component of its MOC assessment methodology, essential to an orderly and transparent price discovery process. The Singapore fuel MOC process is facilitated by the Platts Editorial Window or eWindow, an online data-entry and communications tool, which brings greater speed, transparency and efficiency to the price assessment processes.

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