Americas News
Panama August Bunker Sales Gain 4.5% on Year
Bunker demand in Panama climbed on both a yearly and monthly basis in August.
Total sales rose to 388,640 mt last month, according to preliminary data from the Panama Maritime Authority (AMP). The total was up by 4.5% from a year earlier and by 0.4% from July's level.
The AMP also revised its July data upwards, increasing the total by 2.2% from its preliminary estimate to 387,218 mt. These revisions are now a regular occurrence, and are likely to be made to August's data at a later date as well.
Global bunker sales are generally expected to see a faltering recovery this year from the lows of last year's COVID-19 crisis, with stops and starts in various parts of the world as lockdown measures are eased or tightened in response to infection levels. Bunker volumes in Singapore last month lost 2.3% from the same time a year earlier but gained 0.2% from July's level.
The number of ships coming to Panama to bunker jumped by 5.1% on the month to 595 in August, taking the average stem size down by 4.5% to about 653 mt. Over the previous 12 months the average stem size was about 730 mt.
VLSFO sales dropped by 4% from a month earlier to 265,547 mt, while HSFO sales surged by 21.7% to 78,695 mt. HSFO took a 20.2% share of total sales in August, up from 16.7% a month earlier.
MGO sales sank by 47.2% on the month to 8,265 mt, while low-sulfur MGO jumped by 18.8% to 37,133 mt.
