On September 4, 2026, SNSUC Research Institute’s real-time monitoring shows fuel oil tank utilization at core bonded terminals in East China (including Yangshan, Ningbo, and Zhoushan) reached 89.2%, up 3.6 percentage points from end-August — the highest level of 2026. This aligns with the day’s front-month fuel oil futures price of ¥3,900/t (+0.93%), confirming a tight supply-demand balance at the storage node: first, VLCC-delivered fuel oil cargoes from the Middle East surged into Far East ports during early September (11 VLCCs scheduled for discharge in East China that week per Clarksons); second, some coastal power plants advanced procurement ahead of Q3 maintenance cycles; third, Typhoon ‘Haikui’’s peripheral circulation compressed tidal operation windows at the Yangtze Estuary and Ningbo Port on September 2–3, reducing berth efficiency by 23% and further straining tank turnover. Demurrage fees serve as a sharper signal: average fuel oil vessel demurrage at East China ports stood at $32,500/day on September 4 — up 17% from $27,780/day on August 28 — markedly outpacing Brent crude’s +5.2% rise. This divergence confirms the constraint is not systemic tonnage shortage, but rather localized tank capacity mismatch — i.e., onshore receiving buffer has hit operational inflection. Notably, asphalt tank utilization remains moderate at 63.5% (per major East China depots), reflecting steady but unspectacular demand (infrastructure projects entering quarterly completion review). Yet average truck-loading wait time at East China refineries has lengthened to 42 hours (vs. 29-hour August average), indicating logistics friction is shifting from storage to land-based collection and distribution. Regional haulage economics reveal tightening margins: for example, barge transport of fuel oil from Zhoushan to Nantong now costs ¥86.3/t — up 11.2% MoM — while the front-month calendar spread (Oct–Sep) narrowed to only ¥14.2/t, shrinking arbitrage margin to under 17% of freight cost, well below the 30% threshold required to cover operational risk and execution premium.SNSUC Research Institute recommends: (i) for fuel oil importers with shipments scheduled before mid-September, adopt a ‘small-batch, high-frequency’ warehousing strategy, using blockchain-enabled digital warehouse receipts to reduce minimum entry lot size from 5,000 to 1,200 tons, thereby enhancing tank responsiveness; (ii) for asphalt buyers, consider deferring concentrated pickups originally planned for early September to post-September 15, capturing natural replenishment of loading slots and lowering integrated logistics cost.