Asia’s 10-ppm sulphur gasoil margins were broadly steady day-on-day at $25.57 a barrel as muted market activity continued for a third consecutive day on Wednesday, against a backdrop of unchanged fundamentals.
A portion of the market was away for a conference until the end of the week.
Asian supplies for April could be steady from March, excluding China, with sales tenders expected in the next two days as a handful of refineries are still in the midst of confirming their production plans.
Cash differentials for 10 ppm sulphur gasoil fell further to $1.13 per barrel on competitively-priced offers for March parcels.
Jet fuel refining margins were almost unchanged day on day at $23.87 per barrel.
As a result, regrade was mostly steady at a discount of $1.70 a barrel.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
– No gasoil or jet fuel deal
INVENTORIES
– U.S. crude oil inventories rose last week, while fuel stockpiles fell, according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Tuesday. Crude stocks rose by about 6.2 million barrels in the week ended Feb. 24, they said. Gasoline inventories fell by about 1.8 million barrels, while distillate stocks fell by about 340,000 barrels, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
– Middle distillates stocks at Fujairah Oil Zone hit a more than 10-month low of 1.421 million barrels for the week ended Feb. 27, according to industry information service S&P Global Commodity Insights.
NEWS
– Oil prices extended gains for a second session on Wednesday after a strong jump in manufacturing in China, the world’s top crude importer, boosted the outlook for global fuel demand.
– U.S. crude oil production fell in December to 12.10 million barrels per day (bpd), its lowest since August 2022, Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed on Tuesday.
– Premiums of marine fuel, also known as bunkers, are set for a bumpy recovery in March in Singapore, the world’s largest bunkering port, as refuelling demand from the shipping sector has recently waned, multiple trade sources said.
– China’s CNOOC Ltd 600938, 600938 has discovered a new oilfield with light crude reserves of 100 million tonnes in the Bohai Sea, which stretches along China’s northern coastline, the company said on Wednesday.
– The sale of gasoline and gasoil by Indian state refiners increased in February, compared to the previous month, preliminary sales data shows. India gasoline sales rose by 13.5%, while gasoil sales was up by 9.2% in February from the previous month, the data showed.
– China’s manufacturing activity expanded at the fastest pace in more than a decade in February, an official index showed on Wednesday, smashing expectations as production zoomed after the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions late last year.
Source: Reuters