Crude Oil
Crude Oil continued to push higher as bulls appeared to be testing stops and succeeding. Brent settled 29 cents higher at $ 70.16 /bbl. WTI added another 51 cents to settle at $ 64.81.
There appears to be little news that is spurring the upward movement over the last few days. This movement therefore can only be attributed to momentum really.
Naphtha
The Asian naphtha physical crack once again tumbled to 4 and 1/2 month lows to settle at $90.55 /MT. The dip in LPG prices added to bearish sentiment in the market. Current prices for propane are $ 50 / MT lower than Naphtha which makes the alternative feed stock a preferred choice where flexibility permits.
Prices of LPG, (made up of butane and propane), usually fall after winter as it is also a fuel for heating. The partial switch from naphtha typically takes place when LPG prices are about 90 percent of naphtha’s value. Formosa, Asia’s top naphtha importer, has returned to buying propane last week for its naphtha crackers for the first time in more than three months.
The February crack has reduced further $ 0.25 /bbl.
Gasoline
Asia’s gasoline crack was at a two-session high of $7.34 a barrel after falling to a five-session low on Friday. Despite the recovery, the current crack has fallen 36 percent in value compared to a year ago.
The February crack has come down to $ 10.85 /bbl.
Distillates
Jet fuel prices climbed to their highest level in three years on a combination of high crude prices couple with anticipated high demand for the Lunar New Year festivities in China pushed them to above $ 82 / bbl.
The February gasoil crack is stronger today at $ 14.35 /bbl with the 10 ppm crack at $ 15.55 /bbl. The February regrade is unchanged at $ 0.90 /bbl.
Fuel Oil
Cash premiums for Asia’s 380-cst high-sulphur fuel oil cargoes climbed to their highest since Jan. 3 amid elevated deal value on Monday. In the break bulk ex-wharf market, stiff competition weighed on 380-cst fuel oil ex-wharf premiums as suppliers sought to attract buyers ahead of the lull period during the Chinese new year holidays next month.
While 380 cst cargoes are seen trading at a premium of 50-80 cents / MT to Singapore quotes, 180 cst cargoes continue to trade at discounts of around $ 1 / MT to the marker.
Russia’s export duties for crude and fuel oil are expected to rise to $120.1 per tonne in February from $111.4 per tonne in January, data from the finance ministry showed on Monday.
The flat price for both grades of fuel oil is firmly in contango now. The 180 cst grade with a contango of $ 1.00 / MT looks marginally weaker than the 380 cst grade ($ 0.50 / MT)
The February 180 cst crack is valued still lower at -$ 5.95 /bbl with the visco spread at $ 0.30 / bbl.
About this blog
This blog post attempts to give a top level summary of the Singapore market goings on to a person who seeks to obtain a directional sense of the market on a daily basis.
Disclaimer : All the views are the author’s personal views. These do not constitute an advice to buy or sell any commodity