LONDON: Gasoline refining margins in northwest Europe dipped on Wednesday, weighed by weak export economics, but a larger than expected draw in US inventories of the motor fuel capped losses.
US gasoline stocks fell by 2.7 million barrels last week, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.6 million barrels drop, data from the Energy Information Administration showed.
The draw is likely to encourage exports from Europe to the US after a period of slow trading along the route.
Spot cargoes that have recently been booked on transatlantic route from Europe were likely heading to South America or Canada, traders said.
Northwest European gasoline blending components were tightening after a string of cargo bookings of finished grade to west Africa in recent weeks and as China drew reformate cargoes, traders said.
Traders also said the gasoline arbitrage from northwest Europe to the Mediterranean was open.
Turkey's Tupras is calling for bids to sell one or two 30,000-35,000 tonne cargoes of unleaded 95 RON gasoline every month between Oct. 1 and March 31, 2017, according to tender document seen by Reuters.
Bids need to be submitted by Aug. 18 at 1800 GMT and will remain valid until Aug. 26 at 1600 GMT.
Weak Asian demand opened up a rare naphtha arbitrage from India and the Middle East to Europe, with traders heard booking cargoes from the two regions with delivery options to ARA, traders said.
No specific tankers were immediately confirmed along the routes.
GASOLINE
There were no Eurobob trades during the afternoon trading window. There were no bids or offers.
Some 6,000 tonnes traded in the morning at $462 a tonne fob Amsterdam-Rotterdam, unchanged.
Gunvor and Total sold to OEL Pool, Shell and BP.
Rolympus sold two barges of premium unleaded gasoline to Total at $491 a tonne fob ARA, up from $484 a tonne fob ARA on Tuesday.
Gasoline barge refining margins fell slightly to $7.10 a barrel from $7.39 a barrel.
The September swap stood at around $477 a tonne at the close, up from $470 a tonne.
Brent crude oil futures were down 6 cents at $48.17 a barrel by 1537 GMT.
US August RBOB gasoline futures were up 0.84 percent at 1.4346 a gallon.
The US gasoline crack was trading at $14.04 a barrel, up from $12.80 a barrel.
NAPHTHA
BP sold a cargo to Total at $388 a tonne cif NWE, up from $380 a tonne on Tuesday.
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