Asia’s gasoline refining margins extended declines to a third straight session on Friday, ending the week lower, as steady inventory levels and tepid demand prospects weighed on the market.

The crack (GL92-SIN-CRK) ticked down $0.40 from the previous day to $4.33, its weakest level since Nov. 14, amid muted trading activity on the day.

Stocks of the motor fuel held in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) refining and storage hub rose marginally on the week to a new record high, data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global showed on Thursday.

Gasoline stocks stood at 1.54 million metric tons, from 1.53 million tons a week earlier, due to slow export activity and low regional demand, Insight Global analyst Rick Veringmeier said.

In the naphtha market, the inventories rose to 0.507 million tons from 0.469 million tons the previous week.

Cracking margins for the petrochemical feedstock (NAF-SIN-CRK) shed $2.07 from Thursday to hit a new four-month low of $70.73. The crack last fell below that level on Aug. 16.

NEWS
Oil prices edged up on Friday, heading for a fourth consecutive week of gains, as the latest U.S. sanctions on Russian energy trade heightened expectations for oil supply disruptions.

China’s oil refinery throughput in 2024 fell for the first time in more than two decades barring the pandemic-hit year of 2022, government data showed on Friday, as plants tempered operations in response to stagnant fuel demand and depressed margins.

Up to 10% of the country’s oil refining capacity faces closure in the next ten years, as an earlier-than-expected peak in Chinese fuel demand crushes margins and Beijing’s drive to wring out inefficiency begins to squeeze older and smaller plants.

Global diesel prices and refining margins spiked following the latest round of U.S. sanctions on Russia’s oil trade on expectations the measures would tighten supplies, according to analysts and LSEG data.

SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
No gasoline trades and no naphtha trades for the day.
Source: Reuters