SINGAPORE DATA: Fuel oil stockpiles fall 8% WOW to 4-week low as imports shrink

Singapore's commercial inventories of heavy distillates dropped 8.1% week over week to a four-week low of 23.03 million barrels in the week ended Oct. 22, showed Enterprise Singapore data released late Oct. 23, on the back of lesser imports into the world's largest bunkering hub.

The fuel oil inventories, which hit a four-week high of 25.06 million barrels in the previous week to Oct. 15, were currently at their lowest since Sept. 24, when they were seen at 22.8 million barrels, Enterprise Singapore data compiled by Platts showed.

This week's stocks, however, were 14.3% higher compared with the corresponding week in 2024, according to the data.

The residual fuel inventories in Singapore have averaged about 22.2 million barrels so far in 2025, compared with a weekly average of 19.7 million barrels in 2024, and an average of 20.4 million barrels in 2023, according to Enterprise Singapore data.

Singapore's fuel oil imports shrank 24.6% week over week to 773,132 million mt in the week to Oct. 15, with inflows from Asian suppliers making up nearly 48% of the total volume in the latest week at 370,838 mt, up about 21.4% compared with the volume imported from within the region in the previous week, the data showed.

Although the city-state's fuel oil imports from neighboring Malaysia dropped about 20% week over week to 99,404 mt in the week to Oct. 22, Singapore imported about 60,203 mt from Pakistan, 32,944 mt from India, and 17,152 mt from Japan in the latest week, compared with none from these countries in the preceding week, the data showed.

Fuel oil imports from Europe plunged 94.3% week over week to 2,247 mt in the week to Oct. 22, all of which came from the Netherlands, while Singapore imported 71,516 mt of fuel oil from Russia in the latest week, down about 20% week over week, the data showed.

There were no fuel oil imports from the Middle East in the week to Oct. 22, the Enterprise Singapore data showed.

Meanwhile, Singapore's fuel oil exports dropped 42% week over week to 355,383 mt in the week to Oct. 22, as outflows to China slumped about 86% from the previous week to 38,000 mt, the data showed.

Singapore exported 1,985 mt of fuel oil to Sri Lanka in the week ended Oct. 22, but there were no fuel oil exports to Bangladesh in the latest week, the data showed.

Singapore's inventory data counts only stocks at onshore terminals. Enterprise Singapore describes heavy distillates as "residues," which include cracked and straight-run fuel oil and low sulfur waxy residue.

Choppy bunker demand

Downstream demand for low-sulfur fuel oil was seen as bumpy throughout the week ended Oct. 24, despite slightly steadier flows of inquiries earlier in the week prior to the surge in international crude oil prices, bunker suppliers said.

LSFO stocks around the Singapore hub are expected to remain ample for the near term, thus also pressuring ex-wharf premiums for November's supply, according to traders.

"The delivered [LSFO] market has been really quiet and moving slow; some players might be carrying forward cargoes from October to November," a Singapore-based trader said.

Barging schedules for balance-October refueling dates are adequate, though more offers were recently leaning toward the early-November period.

The Platts-assessed Singapore-delivered 0.5%S marine fuel bunker premium over the FOB Singapore Marine Fuel 0.5%S cargo values averaged higher at $12.35/mt Oct. 1-23, compared with the $12.19/mt across all of September.

Spot demand for HSFO was largely healthier in comparison, while term contract nominations also fill some of the suppliers' prompt barging slots, according to bunker suppliers.

However, ample HSFO inventories around Singapore hub also pose imminent downsides to ex-wharf valuations for the near term too, whereas suppliers' downstream profit margins remain mostly buoyed, traders said.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed the Singapore-delivered 380 CST HSFO bunker premium over FOB Singapore 380 CST HSFO cargo values averaging $12.57/mt so far since October, above the $11.73/mt in September.