GASOLINE

In Northeast Asia, the differentials for MR-size cargoes of 92RON gasoline weakened on sluggish demand. As reported, no purchases had been heard from Indonesia, the largest buyer of gasoline in Asia. Amid poor demand in Southeast Asia, traders were inactive to buy gasoline. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, an independent refinery in Shandong, China sold an MR-size cargo of 92RON gasoline loading on Dec 12-14 at a discount of 80cts/bbl to Singapore quotations on an FOB basis.

NAPHTHA

In the Northeast Asian spot market, Mitsui Chemical seemed to have bought small amount of naphtha for second-half December delivery arriving at Osaka with unknown prices. However, a trader in Northeast Asia said that procurements for second-half December delivery by Japanese end-users temporally ended, and buying interests for the next time were expected to be back after the end-users reduced their inventories toward the end of the year. In the meantime, an oil company in Northeast Asia informed that the differential for open-spec grade on a CFR Japan basis was slightly up to a discount of $4/mt to Japan quotations. In Asian petrochemical markets, prices for aromatics were increasing, so it was a bullish factor for prices of naphtha as the feedstock of petrochemical products, as well.

MIDDLE DISTILLATES

The differential for MR-size cargoes of 0.001% sulfur gasoil on an FOB South Korea basis went up. Some refiners were raising their offers due to a lack of spot cargoes for sale amid lower production at their refineries. Sellers in South Korea said that they would sell cargoes at a discount of around 80cts/bbl to Singapore quotations on an FOB basis. It had been pointed out that domestic demand in South Korea stayed firm, so that refiners in the country would not lower their offers to export cargoes and digest their inventories.

FUEL OIL

The differential for MR-size cargoes of 0.5% sulfur fuel oil on an FOB South Korea basis declined. In South Korea, a concern that supply/demand fundamentals for 0.5% sulfur fuel oil as feedstock of VLSFO would weak emerged. SK Energy was planning to sell 300,000mt of VLSFO in November, so that supply would be ample in the market. Owing to this, a South Korean oil company saw that the differential for 0.5% sulfur fuel oil on an FOB Korea basis was down to a discount of $15.00-25.00/mt to Singapore quotations (0.5%S). Further, S-Oil seemed to have sold 24,000mt of 0.5% sulfur slurry oil loading on Dec 13-15 at a discount of $40-50/mt to Singapore quotations (0.001% sulfur gasoil) to an unknown buyer. Meanwhile, Nghi Son refinery in Vietnam was conducting a tender to sell 10,000mt of fuel oil loading on Dec 5-7. The closing date and the validity were set on Nov 25.

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