Asia’s gasoline cracks inked weekly losses as crude oil prices jumped over deepened geopolitical tension in the Middle East.
The margins dipped to $3.06 a barrel over Brent crude on Friday, down from $4.16 a barrel a day earlier.
At the Singapore window, Aramco sold 50,000 barrels of the 92-octane grade of the fuel to Phillips 66. There were no trades for naphtha this week, market participants said.
Asia’s naphtha margins rose for a second session on Friday, although they remained sitting in the negative territory.
Rising costs of crude oil are squeezing profits at China’s independent refineries amid stiff competition for limited Russian supply, while the price of Venezuelan crude gains ground after the U.S. freed up sanctions on its industry.
In tenders, Sri Lanka’s (Lanka IOC) is seeking gasoil and gasoline for December delivery at the ports of Colombo and Trincomalee, a tender document showed this week.
INVENTORIES
Gasoline stocks held at the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) hub stayed steady at 1.37 million tons in the week ended Thursday, data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global showed. Loading delays are ongoing in the ARA region and along the Rhine, although low water levels in the river are expected to rise WL-KAUB, which could smooth operations.
Naphtha stocks fell due to increased demand from the petrochemical, refining and storage industries along the river Rhine.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
-one gasoline deal, no naphtha deal
NEWS
– Oil prices extended gains on Friday and were on track to rise for a second week on heightened fears that the Israel-Gaza crisis may spread in the Middle East and disrupt supply from one of the world’s top-producing regions.
– U.S. oil refiners have cranked up output of diesel, heating oil and jet fuel for winter but are struggling to turn a profit because gasoline margins have fallen over 80% since the summer driving season ended.
– Japan is urging Saudi Arabia and other oil producing nations to increase supplies to stabilize the global oil market, the chief cabinet secretary said on Thursday, as rising fuel prices amid the Israel-Hamas conflict threaten to impact the global economy.
– Venezuelan state-run oil company PDVSA has begun contacting customers with crude supply contracts amid the temporary lifting of U.S. sanctions, two people familiar to the matter said on Thursday, moving to resume cash sales to global refiners.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Muyu Xu; Editing by Shweta Agarwal)