NEW DELHI: Asia’s gasoline complex posted a weekly loss of over 15% even as strong pull from U.S. markets amid lower stocks cover heading into the summer driving season boosted broader sentiment.
Traders said market participants could be taking a cautious approach due to a rise in exports from China in March and April.
While the crack weakened on week, it still traded strong above $14 a barrel on Friday and demand remained healthy in physical markets.
Energy trader Aramco snapped up 50,000 barrels of benchmark grade of gasoline at the Singapore window. Vitol and Unipec bought a cargo each of the higher octane-95 grade of gasoline.
Meanwhile, Paris-based International Energy Agency said in its monthly report that tightness in global gasoline markets could ease going forward as U.S. refinery crude intake accelerates.
Naphtha stocks at the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) refining and storage area declined to 170,000 tonnes in the week to Thursday, compared with 226,000 tonnes in the prior week, data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global showed.
Gasoline stocks were steady at 1.4 million tonnes.
Several Asian refiners are likely to maximize gasoline output from May and reduce gasoil output, cashing in on higher profits for the motor fuel ahead of the peak summer driving season, industry sources and analysts say.
Taiwan’s Formosa Petrochemical Corp (FPCC) will increase its refinery run rate in May to around 480,000 barrels per day (bpd), slightly lower than an earlier plan, after completing maintenance, a company spokesperson said on Friday.
Kuwait’s recently opened Al Zour refinery has stopped offering very low-sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) tenders amid a partial shutdown at the complex, trade sources said.
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