Asia Distillates-Trading liquidity slow; China June export plan emerges

Asia’s middle distillates markets started the week little changed amid slower trading activity as traders mulled June and July demand-supply fundamentals, with China majors likely to keep exports unchanged next month.

China exports are estimated at 800,000-900,000 metric tons for June loading, compared with up to 1 million tons in May, several local consultancies said on Monday, with refinery runs likely to drop from rate cuts because of poor local sales.

Physical June cargo discussions for gasoil in the open trading window slowed down at the start of the week, reflecting hesitation among traders to take fresh positions at month-end.

Refining margins closed the trading session slightly below $14 a barrel.

Spot market differentials gained only 2 cents a barrel as the paper contango market structure narrowed slightly.

A buy-sell gap capped overall spot liquidity in the physical markets.

Regrade was little changed at a discount of around $1.50 a barrel, a reflection of positive expectations for the aviation fuel still.

SINGAPORE CASH DEALS

– One deal for jet fuel, no deal for gasoil.

REFINERY NEWS

– Japan’s Cosmo Oil, a unit of Cosmo Energy Holdings 5021.T, shut down the 102,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) No.2 crude distillation unit (CDU) at the Chiba refinery on April 29 for planned maintenance, a company spokesperson said on Monday.

NEWS

– Goldman Sachs raised its global oil demand forecast for 2030 on Monday and expects consumption to peak by 2034 on a potential slowdown in electric vehicle adoption, keeping refineries running at higher-than-average rates till the end of this decade.

– South Africa’s state-owned Central Energy Fund has acquired land and assets at the country’s largest refinery which has been out of operation for the last two years, the energy ministry said on Saturday.

– Indonesia’s Pertamina is seeking additional gasoil and jet fuel cargoes for June delivery after recent procurements, three sources said on Monday.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Trixie Yap; Editing by Varun H K)