Americas News
Panama February Bunker Sales Drop to Five-Month Low
Marine fuel demand in Panama sank on both a monthly and yearly basis in February, reaching the lowest level in five months.
Panama's total sales reached 403,703 mt in February, the lowest level since September, according to preliminary data from the Panama Maritime Authority (AMP). The total was down by 4.5% from a year earlier and by 7.2% from January's level.
Singapore, the world's largest marine fuels hub, saw sales rise by 8.3% year-on-year in February but drop by 13.3% from January's level
VLSFO sales in Panama lost 6.9% on the year to 282,688 mt in February. HSFO rallied by 4.1% to 76,083 mt, MGO jumped by 11.3% to 12,106 mt and LSMGO fell by 5.8% to 32,826 mt.
HSFO's share of the total was 18.9%, up from 17.3% a year earlier.
The number of ships coming to Panama to bunker advanced by 9.9% on the year to 588 in February, taking the average stem size down by 13.1% to about 687 mt. Over the previous 12 months the average stem size was about 686 mt.
The VLSFO price at Balboa averaged $663.50/mt in February, according to Ship & Bunker data, up by 1.5% from January's levels but down by 10.1% from February 2022.
Singapore's average VLSFO price in February was $643/mt, down by 0.4% from January's level and by 12.4% from the level seen a year earlier. Ship & Bunker's G20-VLSFO Index of average prices across 20 leading bunkering ports gained 0.2% on the month and lost 10.1% on the year to $665/mt in February.
