Friday’s close in Singapore and Fujairah told two different stories about the bunker market. Residual fuel eased across all three of the hubs Marcenta tracks most closely, while distillate costs pushed the other way, and that divergence is starting to show up in owners’ running-cost math for smaller tonnage that still burns MGO on approach and manoeuvring.

VLSFO settled at $893.50/mt in Singapore (-20.00), $710.00/mt in Rotterdam (-6.50) and $995.50/mt in Fujairah (-26.50). MGO moved the opposite direction at every port: $1,395.50/mt in Singapore (+52.50), $1,482.50/mt in Rotterdam (+30.00) and $1,705.00/mt in Fujairah (+22.00). The Fujairah MGO premium over VLSFO is now above $700/mt, a wide enough spread that owners fixing smaller handysize and supramax tonnage through the Gulf are having the conversation about distillate exposure again.

On the Baltic, Thursday’s close (17 September, the latest confirmed print at time of writing) put the BDI at 3,336, up 9 points on the day. Capesize did the work: the BCI added 44 points to 5,656, with average daily earnings climbing $396 to $51,296. Panamax kept losing ground, the BPI down 43 points to 2,282 and average earnings off $392 to $20,535 — the fourth straight session of declines for the segment. Supramax and handysize both firmed modestly, the BSI up 14 points to 1,762 (earnings $22,275, +$178) and the BHSI up 19 points to 980 (earnings $17,633, +$328).

Route-level data from the Baltic Exchange’s Week 38 roundup (14-18 September) shows the same Capesize strength playing out on the water. C5 (West Australia-Qingdao) opened the week in the low $17s and drifted into the mid-$16s before stabilising into the close, while C3 (Tubarao-Qingdao) firmed through the week into the low-to-mid $42s, with the strongest fixtures approaching $43 as sustained fixing reduced both cargo availability and the number of ballasters. Brent crude was last quoted at $103.87/bbl, down 0.91% on the day.

What we are watching: whether the MGO premium in the Middle East keeps widening into next week, whether Panamax finds a floor after four consecutive down sessions, and whether Capesize earnings can hold above $50,000 into the weekend given the softer Pacific tone the Baltic Exchange flagged mid-week.