Asia’s refining profit margin for naphtha fell on Monday as lower prices of alternative feedstock liquefied petroleum gas hit demand sentiment, traders said.

Steam crackers in Asia can typically switch between 10% and 20% of naphtha to alternative feedstock LPG whenever prices are low.

The naphtha crack declined by $1 to $58.40 a tonne over Brent crude, and backwardation also narrowed by $1 per tonne. On Monday, the first-half June naphtha traded $5 a tonne higher than the following month.

Gasoline markets were steady below $10 a barrel in the absence of any deals at the Singapore window. There were two bids with no corresponding offers for the fuel.

TENDERS

Pakistan’s PSO issued a series of tenders seeking benchmark grade and combination cargoes of gasoline for July delivery, tender data showed.

NEWS

– OPEC’s share of India’s oil imports fell at the fastest pace in 2022/23 to the lowest in at least 22 years, as intake of cheaper Russian oil surged, data obtained from industry sources show, and the major producers’ share could shrink further this year.

– Iran has set the official selling price (OSP) of its Iranian Light crude oil grade for its Asian buyers at $2.80 a barrel above the Oman/Dubai average for May, an industry source with knowledge of the matter said.

– Indian companies “sometimes” face delays in paying for Russian oil priced above the $60 cap per barrel fixed by the Western nations, India’s oil secretary Pankaj Jain said.
Source: Reuters