Gasoline: Talks in NE Asia remain quiet amid TA season setting in

The differentials for MR-size cargos of 92RON gasoline on an FOB Northeast Asia basis were unchanged on week. Most refiners in Northeast Asia had yet to decide their export plans in April, and no spot cargoes were observed. However, it was likely that supply from Northeast Asia would be few as the spring turnaround season for refineries were setting in. In addition, some refineries troubles had taken place in Japan. On the demand side, Indonesia's state-owned Pertamina closed a tender to buy 92RON gasoline from April to June. The company would receive one 200,000bbl cargo per month from each seller during the period. Meanwhile, Hyundai Oilbank in South Korea proved to have sold two cargoes of alkylate loading in March. The first one was 100,000bl to be loaded in mid-March and the second one was 300,000bbl to be loaded in late March. The price for both cargoes were reportedly at a premium of around $12.00/bbl to the quotations on an FOB basis.

Naphtha: Lotte Indonesia buys 2H Apr via tender

The second half April open-spec naphtha prices on a CFR Japan basis were unchanged on week. Both bullish and bearish factors were mixed in the spot market. A demand from Southeast Asia emerged and there was turnaround at some refineries. On the other hand, procurements for the second half April-delivering cargoes decreased from China compared to the first half April.

Lotte Chemical Indonesia bought naphtha for delivery in the second half April at a premium of around $2/mt to the quotations to be assessed 45 days before on a CFR basis via a tender closed on Wednesday for a new naphtha cracker. The seller was reportedly Trafigura. It was not revealed how many cargoes it bought. The company was considered to secure a raw material for trial-operations that was scheduled to start in April or May.

Lotte Chemical Indonesia was conducting a term sell tender for butadiene that was scheduled to be supplied from June. This tender was scheduled to close on Mar 12. A market source said that the company would probably start exports for propylene in June.

PRefChem in Malaysia had been shutting down its naphtha cracker since early February. According to a source, the closure was expected to last until around Apr 20. A view was shown that demand might recover in Southeast Asia as PRefChem would resume its naphtha cracker next month and a new naphtha cracker would start operations going forward. In the meantime, PRefChem was shutting down one of two residue fluid catalytic crackers (RFCC).

Middle distillates: SR-size kerosene market down on weaker JPN buying interest

The differential for MR-size cargoes of jet fuel on an FOB South Korea basis unchanged on week. No fresh sales were heard in the spot market. However, China International United Petroleum & Chemicals Co (UNIPEC) reportedly moved on selling at least one cargo loading in March. In Japan, ENEOS and Cosmo Oil had refineries troubles, but no procurement of the fuel was heard by both oil firms. Idemitsu Kosan had regular maintenance activities at its refinery in around May. The company sometimes procured cargoes to bring to the US in the spot market, but no actual actions on procurements were heard at present. On the other hand, Taiyo Oil resumed two crude distillation units at the Shikoku refinery by Mar 6 that had been shut down in December last year due to turnaround

The differential for SR-size cargoes of kerosene on an FOB South Korea basis went down. In Japan, the winter kerosene demand season almost ended and buying interest in South Korean cargoes from Japanese oil companies and Japanese trading houses was decreasing.

The differentials for MR-size cargoes of 0.001% sulfur gasoil on an FOB Northeast Asia basis went up on on tight supply. CPC CO in Taiwan sold 450,000bbl of 0.001% sulfur gasoil loading on Apr 12-22. On Mar 6, Formosa Petrochemicals Co (FPCC) issued a tender to sell 750,000bbl of 0.001% sulfur gasoil loading on Apr 10-14 and an MR-size cargo of 0.05% sulfur gasoil loading on Apr 13-17. In Northeast Asia, the spring regular maintenance activities of refineries had started, and supply of gasoil was on the decline. In particular, oil companies in China were possibly going to curtail their exports due to tight fundamentals at home, causing thin supply in Northeast Asia.

Fuel oil: Slack fundamentals drag LSFO prices down

　The differential for MR-size cargoes of 0.5% sulfur fuel oil on an FOB South Korea basis went down on slack supply/demand fundamentals. With lingering slump of demand, Asia saw increasing cargoes of low sulfur fuel oil (LSFO) imported from the Middle East, Africa, Europe and so on. Taiwan's Formosa Petrochemical Corp (FPCC) previously sold low sulfur straight run (LSSR) fuel oil for loading in March, as previously reported. It was later revealed that FPCC struck the deal at a premium of around $2,00/mt on an FOB Taiwan basis.