LONDON: Gasoline refining margins in northwest Europe rose to $7.50 a barrel on Tuesday amid limited trading activity as recent stock draws eased concerns over recent months' glut.
The arbitrage to the US East Coast has slowed down significantly in recent days.
Exports to West Africa have similarly dwindled as congestion outside Nigeria limited new buying, traders said.
Inventories in ARA continued to decline as tankers were loading volumes booked in recent weeks.
The gasoline market remained in backwardation into October and storage economics going into the summer of 2017 no longer worked, traders said.
The nearing seasonal refinery maintenance further boosted expectations that stocks, which remain above five-year average levels, would decline in the coming months.
The naphtha market remained under heavy pressure due to little buying from Asian petrochemical plants.
GASOLINE
There were no Eurobob trades during the afternoon trading window.
There were no bids or offers.
Some 8,000 tonnes traded in the morning at $462 a tonne fob Amsterdam-Rotterdam, compared with trades at $445-$452 a tonne on Monday. Gunvor and Total sold to Shell, Finco and BP.
Litasco sold a barge of premium unleaded gasoline to Total at $484 a tonne fob ARA, compared with $477.50 a tonne.
Gasoline barge refining margins rose to $7.50 a barrel from $6 a barrel.
The September swap stood at around $470 a tonne at the close, up from $462 a tonne.
Brent crude oil futures were up 55 cents at $48.90 a barrel by 1548 GMT.
US August RBOB gasoline futures were up 0.6 percent at 1.4088 a gallon.
The US gasoline crack was trading at $12.80 a barrel, up from $12.98 a barrel.
NAPHTHA
BP sold a cargo to Gunvor at $380 a tonne cif NWE.
The naphtha crack was at around minus $6.35 a barrel.
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