Asia’s middle distillates markets turned slightly quiet, with markets weighing near-term supply-demand fundamentals, as June supplies remained sufficient, and paper markets volatility.
Traders remained cautiously optimistic, given that supply-demand fundamentals remained ample against a backdrop of healthy refining margins, multiple sources said.
Most refiners will run as high as possible now given the healthy cracks for key refined fuel, they added.
Nearly 600,000 metric tons of India-origin barrels loading in May will be headed for southeast Asia in
Furthermore, the east-west arbitrage spreads remain favourable for swing supplies to pivot their spot trade flows east, adding on to additional barrels in the region, one of the sources said.
However, worries on refinery performances in hotter weather remained and this will end up affecting production and outright supplies, a second source added.
Refining margins (GO10SGCKMc1) fell further for a second straight session to around $15.5 a barrel.
On the trading window, cash differentials (GO10-SIN-DIF) also slipped further reflecting the weaker paper market structure and overall thin spot liquidity with no bids in sight.
Regrade (JETREG10SGMc1) barely moved at discounts of around 95 cents per barrel.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
– No deals for both fuels
INVENTORIES
– U.S. crude oil stockpiles likely fell last week, along with distillate and gasoline inventories, a preliminary Reuters poll found on Monday.
REFINERY NEWS
– The refining unit of Indonesian state energy company Pertamina is planning for a 30-day shut down of its Dumai refinery in October, chief executive Taufik Aditiyawarman told reporters at an industry conference on Tuesday.
NEWS
– Saudi Arabia is expected to burn more crude oil for power generation this summer than last as it ramps up output after OPEC+ eases supply controls and as fuel oil has become costly, analysts and trade sources said.
– China’s imports of crude oil from Russia fell 12.9% in April from a year earlier, coming in at 8.07 million metric tons or 1.96 million barrels per day, Chinese customs data showed on Tuesday.
– Saudi Arabia is always ready for multiple oil price scenarios, and budgets are driven by priorities, the kingdom’s economy minister said on Tuesday.
Source: Reuters