Singapore bunker prices fell on Friday but differentials to cargo values held firm at premium levels on tightening supplies resulting from short-term berth congestion, traders said.
Prices for 380-centistoke (cst) bunker fuel were pegged at $344-$346 a tonne, down $2 from Thursday's Asian close, with the differential to fuel oil at a premium of $1.70, up a marginal 20 cents.
"Everyone, both buyers and sellers, are playing it safe today, ahead of the long weekend. Although the market seems to be on the way down, no one really knows what we will come back to on Tuesday," a Singapore-based bunker supplier said. "No one wants to be caught in the wrong position so everyone is just doing deals only when the price is right. There's not much activity today."