Asia’s 10-ppm sulphur gasoil and jet fuel margins climbed for a second consecutive trading session on Friday, against a backdrop of volatile crude futures through the day and a buy-sell gap in the physical market.
Refining margins for 10 ppm sulphur gasoil and jet fuel both rose slightly to $16.84 a barrel and $15.49 a barrel.
Cash differentials for 10 ppm sulphur gasoil rose to a discount of 21 cents as some aggressive buying interest remained in the open market from Trafigura for early June parcels.
Jet fuel cash differentials fell by more than 20 cents to 11 cents per barrel on the back of aggressive selling interest for early June parcels from Petrochina.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
– No gasoil or jet fuel deal.
REFINERY NEWS
– Taiwan’s Formosa Petrochemical Corp 6505 plans to trim operating rates at its Mailiao refinery to 450,000 barrels per day (bpd) in June and July because of weaker refining margins and a planned maintenance at a secondary unit, a company spokesperson said on Wednesday.
INVENTORIES
– U.S. crude oil inventories rose last week, while gasoline and distillate stockpiles fell, according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Tuesday. Crude stocks rose by about 3.6 million barrels in the week ended May 12, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Gasoline inventories fell by 2.5 million barrels, while distillate stocks fell by 886,000 barrels, the sources said.
– Middle distillate stockpiles at Fujairah Oil Industry Zone were up approximately 34.9% at 4.559 million barrels for the week ended May 15, according to industry information service S&P Global Commodity Insights.
NEWS
– U.S. oil refiners aim to run at up to 94% of a total 17.9 million barrels per day processing capacity this quarter, according to company forecasts and analysts, driven in part by expectations of seasonal travel demand.
– Oil prices fell for a second day on Wednesday after a surprise rise in U.S. crude inventories stoked demand concerns on the heels of weaker-than-expected economic data from the United States and China, the world’s two biggest oil consumers.
– Brazilian state oil company Petrobras approved a new fuel pricing policy for gasoline and diesel that will sharply lower costs for motorists, it announced on Tuesday, ditching a more market-based policy in favor of greater flexibility to smooth price swings.
Source: Reuters