Northwest European (NWE) gasoline refining margins ticked up to about $23 a barrel on Friday, supported by strong transatlantic exports.
Northwest Europe (NWE) gasoline exports to the United States in July remain on a robust path but those to West Africa (WAF) are lagging behind, said Refinitiv analyst Raj Rajendran.
WAF imports in the second quarter was down 56% from the first three months of the year, Rajendran said, adding that July shipments have reached 188,000 metric tons so far, against 731,00 tons last month.
Exports to the United States this month are at about 822,000 tons, compared with 990,000 tons in June, Rajendran said.
Oil supply disruptions across the globe have helped to push Brent crude prices above $81 a barrel for the first time since April.
Barge loading congestion in northwestern Europe continues into its third week, Insights Global’s Bianca Stoiciu said on Thursday, increasing floating storage of products and throttling the number of available barges at a time when low water levels on the Rhine mean vessels cannot fully load.
Rain and lower temperatures along the Rhine have helped to restore water levels somewhat, with barge intakes expected to increase early next week, Riverlake barge brokers said, adding at the Kaub chokepoint barges can currently take around 1,600 metric tons.
Water levels at Kaub have risen slightly to 105cm but are still hovering around lows reached in March, meaning vessels cannot load to full capacity.
Gasoline stockpiles in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp region decreased 2.2% with firm transatlantic demand in addition to higher demand up the Rhine for the summer season, Insights Global said.
Naphtha stockpiles rose 13.2% amid slow blending activity and weak demand along the Rhine, with naphtha prices staying elevated, Stoiciu said, also pointing to high imports including, unusually, from West Africa.
Production at Norway’s 226,000 barrel per day Mongstad oil refinery remains curtailed after a nearby lightning strike forced a partial shutdown on Wednesday, operator Equinor EQNR.OL said on Thursday.
OPEC on Thursday raised its forecast for oil demand growth for 2023 and predicted only a slight slowdown in 2024 despite economic headwinds.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) on Thursday predicted that oil demand would hit a record high this year, though economic headwinds and rising interest rates have deflated growth expectations slightly.
U.S. gasoline stocks were virtually unchanged, falling by only 3,000 barrels last week to 219.5 million barrels, data from the EIA showed, expectations of a 700,000 million barrel drop in a Reuters poll of analysts.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Shadia Nasralla, Editing by David Goodman)