SINGAPORE: Asia’s spot fuel oil market eased slightly on Thursday, while landed stocks at key trading hubs Singapore and Fujairah rose this week.

Residual fuel oil stocks at key trading hub Singapore rebounded to a five-week high, driven by a surge in weekly net imports as more volumes arrived from Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates.

Fujairah stocks have also jumped to an 18-month high recently. Russian barrels continued to move towards the Middle East ahead of upcoming European Union sanctions, while fourth-quarter fuel oil production should remain robust amid strong refinery profit margins.

Reflecting ample inventories and supplies, the recent uptrend in spot premiums for high sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) has likely fizzled out. Cash differentials for 380-cst HSFO fell 16 cents to a premium of $5.67 per tonne on Thursday.

Meanwhile, two spot trades emerged for 0.5% very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) on Thursday for end-November loading. The market’s cash differential eased 42 cents to a premium of $5.00 per tonne.

Residual fuel oil stocks at Fujairah rose 13% to 14.60 million barrels (2.30 million tonnes) in the week ended Oct. 7, latest data from the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone showed.

Onshore fuel oil stocks at Singapore climbed 13% to 21.47 million barrels (3.38 million tonnes) in the week ended Nov. 9, Enterprise Singapore data showed on Thursday.

Weekly fuel oil net imports rose by 42% week-on-week at 741,000 tonnes, led by an uptick in arrivals from the United Arab Emirates. Last week, the data recorded zero import volumes from the UAE.