Singapore fuel oil stockpiles rise on strong end of February Middle East arrivals

ReutersMar 5, 2026 10:36 AM

SINGAPORE, March 5 (Reuters) - Singapore onshore fuel oil inventories rose in the week as Middle Eastern supply arrivals were strong earlier in late-February, although traders expect drawdowns in the coming weeks as March cargoes get trapped in the Strait of Hormuz.

Residual fuel stockpiles rose 2.9% to 23.29 million barrels (about 3.67 million metric tons) in the week to March 4, based on data from Enterprise Singapore. The inventories were at a four-week high. O/SING1

Total fuel oil imports into onshore tanks climbed by 47.5% week-on-week to over 1.3 million tons, with most inflows from the Middle East.

Kuwait was the top origin for the imports in the week, followed by Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, exports from Singapore onshore tanks also rose, more than doubling from the previous week to over 500,000 tons. China was the top destination.

Fuel oil market sources said that immediate inventories were still available but supply is expected to tighten due to a plunge in Middle Eastern supply as the conflict disrupted shipments.

Singapore's spot market for high-sulphur fuel oil and low-sulphur fuel oil had strengthened significantly this week. FUEL/A

Week to Mar. 4, Fuel oil (in metric tons)	Total Imports	Total Exports	Net Imports
AUSTRALIA	0	45,712	-45,712
BAHRAIN	159,780	0	159,780
BANGLADESH	0	60,315	-60,315
BRAZIL	72,031	0	72,031
CHINA	0	150,995	-150,995
GERMANY	0	0	0
INDIA	70,465	175	70,290
INDONESIA	109,680	1	109,679
IRAQ	30,349	0	30,349
JAPAN	11,185	0	11,185
KOREA, REP OF	19,991	0	19,991
KUWAIT	215,547	0	215,547
MALAYSIA	189,516	227,542	-38,026
NORWAY	0	0	0
PHILIPPINES	0	11,975	-11,975
RUSSIA	95,917	0	95,917
SAUDI ARABIA	150,761	0	150,761
TAIWAN	19,947	0	19,947
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES	115,394	0	115,394
UNITED STATES	41,043	0	41,043
VIETNAM	0	5,784	-5,784
TOTAL	1,301,606	502,498	799,108

(Data from Enterprise Singapore)

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