Oil product stockpiles at the UAE's Port of Fujairah rose 1.5% in the week ended Dec. 5 led by gains in light and middle distillates, according to Fujairah Oil Industry Zone data published Dec. 7.

Total inventory was 22.853 million barrels on Dec. 5, up 1.5% from a week earlier when the total was the lowest since the end of October. Stockpiles are up 43% since the end of 2021.

November exports of oil products from the port dropped to 598,000 b/d, the lowest since April, from 653,000 b/d in October, Kpler data showed. Singapore remained the top destination for exports, dominated by fuel oil, while Russia was the biggest origin country for the month.

Fuel oils used for power generation and marine bunkers are counted in the heavy distillates category, which showed a 4.9% drop in the week ended Dec. 5 to 12.56 million barrels, the lowest in six weeks. Supplies of fuel oils have grown 32% since the end of 2021. Russia has increased fuel oil shipments to Fujairah this year, reaching 106,000 b/d in November, only the third month on record when supplies exceeded 100,000 b/d, according to Kpler.

Fuel inventories declined over the week ended Dec. 5 as bunker demand has recently climbed and congestion at barges refueling terminals eased, traders said.

Buyers are keen to fix supply requirements in advance of year-end holidays, when traders are usually off and the market slows, traders added.

Barges filled with low sulfur fuel oil over Dec. 3-4 are available for deliveries in three to four days, market sources said.

"Refueling schedules [for barges] are not tight anymore. Terminal congestions during the last week of November delayed loading operations that tightened barge availability till Dec. 10," a Fujairah-based bunker supplier said.

"The market is still concerned about the potential for excess supply [of LSFO]," a second bunker supplier said, suggesting that Fujairah's bunker premiums are still pressured by plentiful stockpiles.

The Platts Fujairah-delivered marine fuel 0.5% sulfur bunker premium over the FOB Singapore marine fuel 0.5% sulfur cargo assessments climbed to average $17.44/mt Dec. 1-6, from $10.54/mt for all of November, S&P Global Commodity Insights data showed.

Light distillates such as gasoline and naphtha are up the most this year, at 64%. Russia has been shipping gasoline and naphtha to Fujairah consistently since July, after only sporadic cargoes since at least 2017, according to Kpler. Stockpiles of light distillates rose 1.5% in the week ended Dec. 5 to 7.133 million barrels, a two-week high.

Middle distillates such as jet fuel and diesel rose 6.3% to 3.16 million barrels over the week to Dec. 5, bringing them up 48% since the end of 2021.