Asia’s gasoline prices rose for the second consecutive session on Tuesday, despite a lack of market activity amid confidenceon healthy prompt demand-supply fundamentals.
There are still pockets of short-covering demand in some regional destinations and that could still support the market in the next week, one trade source said.
Some buying enquiries for octane blendstocks also emerged after a near-one week hiatus, as the spread between octane-92 and octane-95 gasoline remained above $5 per barrel.
There is a lack of sellers for higher-octane gasoline and that is causing the wide differentials for the time being, one refiner said.
However, demand could start weakening as early as first-half December as three refineries in the Middle East are slated to come back online after scheduled maintenance, which could provide some relief from the current market tightness, a second source said.
Prompt demand has already slowed from the past two weeks, a third source said.
Maintenance season in the Middle East is likely to start again in early January, with Australian demand remaining strong in the near-term due to the summer driving season.
Regional contractual discussions also emerged, with one Vietnam refiner seeking supplies for octane-92 and octane-95 for a full year delivery in 2024.
On the naphtha front, cracking margins were almost steady on a lack of buying activities in the spot market for January lots – in line with earlier expectations.
Some buyers were waiting for a clearer demand direction as they believed sellers to be readily available in the near term, even as average cracker runs are slated to rise in December following the end of planned maintenance.
On the supply side, cargo inflows into Asia for November are slated to hit 6 to 6.1 million metric tons, data from LSEG Oil Research showed.
INVENTORIES
– Analysts in a Reuters poll estimated stockpiles of gasoline were up by about 400,000 barrels last week, while distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, were seen decreasing by about 600,000 barrels.
NEWS
– Parts of the river Rhine in south Germany remained closed to shipping on Tuesday after heavy rain this month but falling water levels could lead to a reopening later on Tuesday, navigation authorities said.
– Oil fell on Tuesday, reversing steep gains made in the past two sessions, as investors turned cautious ahead of a meeting of OPEC+ this Sunday when the producer group may discuss deepening supply cuts due to slowing global growth.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
– No deals for gasoline or naphtha.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Trixie Yap; Editing by Varun H K)