Crude Oil
Oil prices rose slightly on Monday on hopes that energy demand will benefit from the trade deal between the United States and China announced last week. Brent crude settled 12 cents higher at $65.34 a barrel, and WTI oil rose 14 cents to $60.21 a barrel.
While the progress on the trade pact could boost oil demand, the market is still weighing the merits of the deal. The agreement averted $160 billion in additional U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods that were to kick in over the weekend.
Oil prices drew some support on Monday from Chinese data showing industrial output and retail sales growth accelerating more than expected in November. But growth in China is expected to slow further next year, with a likely government growth target of about 6% in 2020, down from 6%-6.5% this year.
All French refineries are expected to join the general protests on 17 Dec’19. Unions could extend the strike action and fully shut down installations at some refineries, with a decision on whether to do so expected Thursday, the CGT union said.
BP and India’s Reliance Industries signed an agreement Monday to build a retail fuels joint venture that would more than triple the number of Reliance’s existing fueling stations in India.
Naphtha
Asia’s naphtha crack fell to a near one-month low of $93.75 a tonne on Monday as high feedstock costs squeezed petrochemical margins, weighing on the fuel’s demand. The naphtha crack value hit a near two-year high of $124.60 a tonne last week, as concerns of tight supplies pushed prices higher.
But the high spot premiums is making the use of naphtha in petrochemical production uneconomical, which could potentially lead to some run cuts at crackers that process naphtha into petrochemicals.
Refinery maintenance in the Middle East in the fourth quarter, including facilities in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, and an upcoming turnaround in the United Arab Emirates had added to the supply woes. The supply crunch has persisted since September, when drone attacks hit Saudi oilfields.
The January crack is lower at – $ 4.05 / bbl.
Gasoline
No fresh news on the Gasoline markets.
The January crack is lower at $ 5.90 /bbl
Click Here for a graphical depiction of Global Gasoline stocks by region.
Distillates
Cash premiums for the benchmark 10 ppm gasoil grade rose to 60 cents per barrel over Singapore quotes on Monday, compared with 55 cents per barrel in the previous session on Friday.
The front-month time spread for 10ppm gasoil widened its backwardated structure by 9 cents to trade at a premium of 37 cents a barrel on Monday.
Cash differentials for jet fuel were at a premium of 35 cents per barrel to Singapore quotes on Monday, compared with 40 cents on Friday.
The January crack for 500 ppm Gasoil is higher at $ 14.40 /bbl with the 10 ppm crack at $ 15.20 / bbl. The regrade is at $ 0.60 /bbl
Click Here for a graphical depiction of Global Distillate stocks by region.
Fuel Oil
Asia’s 0.5% very low-sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) market firmed on Monday as demand swings into full gear ahead of the 2020 deadline set by the IMO to limit the sulphur content.
The Jan/Feb time spread was lower on Monday but held near a two-month high in the previous session.
The January 180 cst crack is lower at -$ 21.00 / bbl with the visco spread at $ 2.00 /bbl.
Click Here for a graphical depiction of Fuel Oil stocks by region.
Hedge Recommendations
No fresh action today.
Hedge recommendations are essentially made for refiners. These are not trading positions as such. The rationale of these positions is to lock in extraordinary levels for the refiner.
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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.