Asia’s gasoline refining profit margin was little changed this week as the focus remained fixed on Indonesian Pertamina’s term tenders, while trades for benchmark-grade at the window supported bullish sentiment.
The crack traded firm above $10 per barrel over Brent crude on Friday.
Pertamina is seeking to buy up to 1.2 million barrels of term gasoline cargoes monthly for delivery between July and September, according to a document seen by Reuters on Friday, its second such tender in a month. Indonesia is Asia’s largest gasoline buyer.
The company is looking to buy up to 500,000 barrels of octane-92 gasoline and up to 700,000 barrels of octane-90 gasoline each month, the document showed, and there are restrictions on origin of cargoes.
Analysts and traders said uncertainty around Pertamina’s imports will be bearish for the crack in the near-term. They expect tenders to be awarded and cargoes to be booked by mid-June to secure supplies for July.
NEWS
– Rising OPEC+ supplies and new streams of oil coming online globally are increasing options for European and Asian refiners and weighing on export demand for light sweet U.S. crude, contributing to lower prices in the country’s main oil-producing regions.
– Japanese oil refiner Idemitsu Kosan 5019 shut the 155,000 barrels-per-day No.3 crude distillation unit (CDU) at its Yokkaichi refinery in central Japan on May 19 for scheduled maintenance, a company spokesperson said on Friday.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
Three gasoline deals, two naphtha trades.
Source: Reuters