Sales of marine bunker fuel at the UAE port of Fujairah rebounded in July after a slump in June to reach their highest in three months, according to data from the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone.
July sales totaled 640,715 cubic meters (about 635,000 metric tonnes), marking a 13.8 percent increase from June, based on FOIZ data published by SP Global Commodity Insights.
The stronger volumes were driven by a boost in high-sulphur marine fuel sales, which soared to their highest since January 2024, climbing 28.4 percent from June to 205,597 cubic meters in July.
A wider price difference between low-sulphur fuel oil and high-sulphur fuel oil likely drove more sales of the high-sulphur variety in July.
The front-month hi-5 price spread, which reflects the premium of low-sulphur over high-sulphur fuel oil, reached a six-month high of over $95 a ton near mid-July, according to LSEG data.
Meanwhile, low-sulphur marine fuel sales, including low-sulphur fuel oils and marine gasoils, rose by 8.0 percent to 435,118 cubic meters.
The market share of high-sulphur bunkers widened to 32 percent in July, while low-sulphur bunkers narrowed to 68 percent.
