NEW DELHI: Asia’s gasoline crack to ICE Brent inched lower on Wednesday but remained above $9 per barrel on strong outlook for demand from the United States.

Refining profit margins, also known as cracks, fell to $9.68 a barrel, down from $9.83 a barrel on Tuesday.

Industry data showed gasoline stocks in the United States fell last week, while the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said US jobs growth and increasing mobility had boosted gasoline consumption so far this year.

Asia’s naphtha crack slipped to $142.48 per tonne, down from 147.30 per tonne on Tuesday. The crack came under pressure after benchmark crude oil futures traded above $70 per barrel briefly.

Weekly data from the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone showed a slight build-up in light distillates inventories.

European refiners’ crude and oil products inventories dropped by around 5% in July from a year earlier as economic activity in the region picked up, Euroilstock data showed on Tuesday.

Goldman Sachs lowered its oil demand forecast for China for the next two months, citing rising concerns over the impact of the next wave of COVID-19 infections.