SINGAPORE: The Asia-Pacific crude market held steady on Tuesday, supported by robust refining margins and high costs of shipping crude from elsewhere to the region.
BHP Billiton sold a cargo of heavy sweet Pyrenees crude loading in February to a Chinese buyer at $3-$3.10 a barrel above dated Brent, a trader said. The premium was roughly in line with the previous month.
BHP Billiton also sold a cargo of February Cossack crude to Petrobras, but the price was not clear.
Thailand's PTT Exploration and Production Pcl may hold off on investing in five projects, including those in Myanmar, Australia and Mozambique, if crude oil prices fall further.
Brent crude fell to a fresh 5-1/2-year low to near $52 a barrel on Tuesday.
MARKET NEWS
Saudi Arabia made deep cuts to its monthly oil prices for European buyers on Monday, a move some analysts said reflects the kingdom's deepening defence of market share, although it also hiked prices in Asia from record lows.
West African crude oil exports to Asia are set to fall to around 1.69 million barrels per day (bpd) in January from 1.93 million bpd planned for December, a Reuters survey showed on Monday.
Two of Japan's biggest buyers of Iranian crude, JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp and Showa Shell Sekiyu KK, are set to keep their purchases from Tehran largely steady in 2015, their top officials said on Tuesday.
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