SINGAPORE, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Cash premium for 380-cst high sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) closed at its highest in more than two months on Friday, buoyed by supply uncertainty over recent sanctions.

Singapore's 380-cst HSFO cash premium traded above $9 a metric ton to cargo quotes, while margins also retained strength. Brent-basis cracks extended their climb to discounts of about $4 per barrel, based on LSEG data.

The strength was largely centred on the high-sulphur market, as risks and logistical challenges to Russian HSFO supplies kept sentiment supported.

The low-sulphur market was rangebound amid thin trade, though buying interest from several trading houses was present in the spot market.

Cash premium for very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) ended the week at levels near $6 per metric ton, while cracks held at premiums of about $11 per barrel.

The premium of VLSFO over 380-cst HSFO, also known as the hi-5 , narrowed by more than 6% week-on-week to about $96 a ton by Friday, amid the HSFO strength.

Meanwhile, Thailand's PTT offered two HSFO cargoes for loading from Sriracha in February. The tender closes on Jan. 21, based on industry sources.

INVENTORY DATA

- Fuel oil inventories in the ARA dipped 0.5% to 1.45 million tons in the week to Jan. 16, data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global showed.

OTHER NEWS

- Oil prices edged up on Friday, heading for a fourth consecutive week of gains, as the latest U.S. sanctions on Russian energy trade heightened expectations for oil supply disruptions.

- Indian Oil Corp, the country's top refiner, has bought 7 million barrels of spot Middle Eastern and African crude oil via tenders, including a rare purchase of Abu Dhabi's Murban, as U.S. sanctions are expected to hit supplies from Russia, trade sources said.

- Sales of marine fuel at the United Arab Emirates' Fujairah, a key Middle Eastern bunker hub, edged higher in 2024 after a downtrend in previous years, latest data showed.

- Maritime security officials said they were expecting Yemen's Houthi militia to announce a halt in attacks on ships in the Red Sea, after a ceasefire deal in the war in Gaza between Israel and the militant group Hamas.

WINDOW TRADES

- 180-cst HSFO: No trade

- 380-cst HSFO: One trade

- 0.5% VLSFO: No trade

ASSESSMENTS

FUEL OIL

CASH ($/T) ASIA CLOSE CHANGE PREV CLOSE RIC

Cargo - 0.5% VLSFO 588.34 -1.13 589.47

Diff - 0.5% VLSFO 5.79 -0.71 6.50 <MFO05-SIN-DI

F>

Cargo - 180cst 496.05 1.77 494.28

Diff - 180cst 4.50 1.50 3.00 <FO180-SIN-DI

F>

Cargo - 380cst 494.74 3.11 491.62

Diff - 380cst 9.33 2.08 7.25 <FO380-SIN-DI

F>

Bunker (Ex-wharf) Premium 9.50 1.50 8.00

- 380cst

Bunker (Ex-wharf) Premium 7.50 -0.50 8.00

- 0.5% VLSFO

For a list of derivatives prices, please refer

to ENSWAP/INFO or the RICs below:

180cst M1

180cst M1/M2

380cst M1

380cst M1/M2

0.5% VLSFO M1

0.5% VLSFO M1/M2

Cracks 180cst-Brent M1

Cracks 180cst-Dubai M1

Cracks 380cst-Brent M1

Cracks 380cst-Dubai M1

Cracks 0.5% VLSFO-Brent M1

Cracks 0.5% VLSFO-Dubai M1

Visco 180cst/380cst M1

Hi-5 0.5% VLSFO/380cst M1

GoFo 10PPM/0.5% VLSFO M1

East-West M1

Barges M1

Barges M1/M2

Crack Barges-Brent M1

(Reporting by Jeslyn Lerh; Editing by Shreya Biswas)

((jeslyn.lerh@thomsonreuters.com))