SINGAPORE, March 5 (Reuters) - Asia's middle distillates markets recorded an uptick in spot window activity on Wednesday, with physical trades emerging for the first time in six sessions, although cautious trading sentiment prevailed and paper market liquidity stayed thin.
Off window, April discussions were underway for refiner spot cargoes.
Import diesel arrivals into Singapore from northeast Asia are likely to remain upbeat for first-half March, shiptracking data from LSEG and Kpler showed, with volumes from India slated to slow.
There were earlier expectations for northeast Asian supplies to be curtailed in March given planned refinery maintenance going on.
Refining margins GO10SGCKMc1 gave back earlier gains and went back to around $15 a barrel given the choppy paper market movements in the afternoon trading session.
On window, five deals were done at higher premiums as buyers were urgently booking these cargoes. Cash differentials GO10-SIN-DIF closed the trading session 14 cents higher day-on-day at 50 cents per barrel.
Regrade JETREG10SGMc1 widened further to discounts of around $1.60 a barrel.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS O/AS
- Five gasoil deals, no jet fuel deals
INVENTORIES
- U.S. crude oil and gasoline stocks fell last week while distillate inventories rose, market sources said, citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Tuesday. API/S
- Middle distillates stocks held at Fujairah Oil Industry Zone slipped slightly to 2.18 million barrels in the week ended March 3, according to industry information service S&P Global Commodity Insights. FUJAIRAH/
NEWS
- China's services activity slightly expanded in February, driven by a faster rebound in demand, including export orders, a private sector survey showed on Wednesday, though an escalating U.S.-Sino tariff war has cast uncertainty over the outlook.
- U.S. retail gasoline prices are set to climb in the coming weeks as new tariffs imposed by the administration of President Donald Trump raise the cost of energy imports, according to traders and analysts.
- The Trump administration said on Tuesday it was ending a license that the U.S. had granted to oil producer Chevron CVX.N since 2022 to operate in Venezuela and export its oil, after Washington accused President Nicolas Maduro of not making progress on electoral reforms and migrant returns.
PRICES
MIDDLE DISTILLATES | ||||
CASH ($/BBL) | ASIA CLOSE | Change | Prev Close | RIC |
Spot Gas Oil 0.5% | 81.15 | -0.04 | 81.19 | GO-SIN |
GO 0.5 Diff | -5.22 | 0.02 | -5.24 | GO-SIN-DIF |
Spot Gas Oil 0.25% | 85.71 | -0.04 | 85.75 | GO25-SIN |
GO 0.25 Diff | -0.66 | 0.02 | -0.68 | GO25-SIN-DIF |
Spot Gas Oil 0.05% | 85.48 | -0.04 | 85.52 | GO005-SIN |
GO 0.05 Diff | -0.89 | 0.02 | -0.91 | GO005-SIN-DIF |
Spot Gas Oil 0.001% | 86.86 | 0.07 | 86.79 | GO10-SIN |
GO 0.001 Diff | 0.50 | 0.14 | 0.36 | GO10-SIN-DIF |
Spot Jet/Kero | 85.27 | -0.16 | 85.43 | JET-SIN |
Jet/Kero Diff | 0.35 | -0.06 | 0.41 | JET-SIN-DIF |
For a list of derivatives prices, including margins, please double click the RICs below. | ||||
Brent M1 | BRENTSGMc1 | |||
Gasoil M1 | GOSGSWMc1 | |||
Gasoil M1/M2 | GOSGSPDMc1 | |||
Gasoil M2 | GOSGSWMc2 | |||
Regrade M1 | JETREGSGMc1 | |||
Regrade M2 | JETREGSGMc2 | |||
Jet M1 | JETSGSWMc1 | |||
Jet M1/M2 | JETSGSPDMc1 | |||
Jet M2 | JETSGSWMc2 | |||
Gasoil 500ppm-Dubai Cracks M1 | GOSGCKMc1 | |||
Gasoil 500ppm-Dubai Cracks M2 | GOSGCKMc2 | |||
Jet Cracks M1 | JETSGCKMc1 | |||
Jet Cracks M2 | JETSGCKMc2 | |||
East-West M1 | LGOAEFSMc1 | |||
East-West M2 | LGOAEFSMc2 | |||
LGO M1 | LGOAMc1 | |||
LGO M1/M2 | LGOASPDMc1 | |||
LGO M2 | LGOAMc2 | |||
Crack LGO-Brent M1 | LGOACKMc1 | |||
Crack LGO-Brent M2 | LGOACKMc2 | |||
(Reporting by Trixie Yap; Editing by Sonia Cheema)
((trixie.yap@thomsonreuters.com;))
Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.