Asia’s gasoline refining margins further slimmed on Thursday, even as multiple deals closed at the end of the trade window.
Trafigura remained the most active market participant, similar to Wednesday, snapping 100,000 barrels from a total of 250,000 barrels that exchanged hands.
The crack dipped to $3.75 per barrel over Brent crude from $4.65 on Tuesday, its lowest since Aug. 30 when it was $3.73.
The price of 92-octane gasoline fell to more than a three-year low of $77.00. It last traded at $71.04 on May 21, 2021.
In the naphtha market, the crack settled lower at $101.13, a drop of $1.51 from the previous session where it hit a near six-month high.
INVENTORIES
Singapore light distillates stocks rose by 238,000 barrels to a two-week high of 15.870 million barrels in the week to Aug. 28, data from Enterprise Singapore showed. O/SING
U.S. gasoline stocks USOILG=ECI fell by 336,000 barrels, and distillates fell by 406,000 barrels according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute figures. API/S
NEWS
Oil prices firmed on Thursday, edging up from multi-month lows on a possible delay to output increases by OPEC+ producers and a decline in U.S. inventories. Brent crude for November LCOc1 rose 42 cents to $73.12 a barrel after touching its lowest since December on Wednesday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for October CLc1 was up 37 cents, at $69.57.
OPEC+ is discussing delaying an oil output increase scheduled to start in October after oil prices hit their lowest in nine months. It was initially set to proceed with a 180,000 barrels-per-day output hike in October, part of a plan to gradually unwind its most recent cuts.
Malaysia’s state energy firm Petroliam Nasional (Petronas) IPO-PETO.KL reported on Thursday a drop in profit in the first half of 2024, compared to the same period last year. Petronas reported a profit after tax of 32.4 billion ringgit ($7.48 billion) in the first half of the year, down from 40.2 billion ringgit ($9.27 billion) in the same period of 2023.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
Five gasoline deals and no naphtha trade.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Haridas; editing by Alan Barona)