Marine fuel sales in Singapore edged higher for a fourth consecutive month in August on the back of resilient demand, official data showed on Monday.
Bunker activity held steady to firmer at the world's largest vessel refuelling hub by volume, with the market working around earlier supply concerns, industry sources said.
Bunker sales totalled 4.77 million tonnes in August, up 0.7 per cent month on month, though down 3.9 per cent year on year, data from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore showed.
Demand for high-sulphur marine fuels retained strong momentum, with volumes up 7.3 per cent from July to 2.10 million tonnes in August. In contrast, low-sulphur fuel bunker volumes eased by 5.8 per cent month on month to 2.19 million tonnes.
Total marine gasoil sales extended gains, hitting a six-month high of 367,700 tonne s. Conventional fuels continued to make up the bulk of the bunkering market share, with alternative fuels comprising only two to 2.5 per cent of total volumes.
Bio-blended bunker sales rebounded by 45.1 per cent month on month to 57,300 tonnes but softened by 57.6 per cent from August last year. Meanwhile, liquefied natural gas bunker sales held largely stable from the previous month, totalling 58,600 tonnes in August, while sliding 12.4 per cent year on year.
(Reporting by Jeslyn Lerh;)