Asia’s gasoline margins declined on Monday even as 250,000 barrels of the benchmark grade of octane exchanged hands at the closing window.

The margins dipped to $7.55 per barrel over Brent crude, its lowest since Dec. 2.

An LSEG report stated that “going forward, higher export costs for Chinese refiners coupled with export quota constraints could result in a drop in gasoline shipments, with December outflows expected at around 550,000 metric ton (mt).

“Gasoline exports from China have averaged about 800,000 mt monthly over January-November this year, a dip of about 200,000 mt from 2023’s 1 million mt monthly average.”

In naphtha, the margins rallied by $4.31 to $87.13 per metric ton over Brent crude.

Oil prices climbed on Monday after the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime introduced greater uncertainty to the Middle East, although the gains were capped by a waning demand outlook for the coming year.

Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) is looking at more oil and gas opportunities in Indonesia’s Natuna Sea, its country representative said on Monday, with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto looking to boost the country’s production.

SINGAPORE CASH DEALS O/AS

Six gasoline deals and no naphtha trade.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Haridas; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)