High-sulphur bunker fuel for the Port of Durban has drastically spiked in price, from $225 last Thursday – Friday’s price was not reported – to $340 at noon today.
It’s not certain whether this can been regarded as an indication of the rand’s poor performance against the US dollar following Friday’s junk-rate grading by Moody’s Investor Service of the country’s sovereign debt rating.
Moody’s announcement triggered strong selling against the rand over the weekend, forcing its value down to $18.06 when markets closed yesterday.
Market analysts generally agree that the price of oil imported into South Africa will most likely go up as investors withdraw from the rand.
It’s the first time that the price for high-sulphur fuel has outstripped the dollar price for low-sulphur fuel oil – $312 as reported by Cockett Marine Oil.
