Crude Oil
Crude settled higher on Tuesday as companies shut down some U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil production ahead of an approaching storm..
Brent crude futures rose 75 cents to settle at $41.21 a barrel. WTI crude futures rose $ 1.01 to $39.57 per barrel.
An estimated 915 KB/D of crude production and 1,500 MMcf/d of natural gas production was shut in, reflecting 49.45% and 55.35% of US Gulf output, respectively, according to the US BSEE, ahead of Tropical Storm Zeta
The storm-induced bump in prices may be short-lived, however, with Hurricane Zeta having weakened to a tropical storm on Tuesday from a hurricane on Monday according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.
api data
The API data showed a huge build in both crude and gasoline, a bearish factor for prices. The draw in distillate stocks, while supportive, could be a return to more normal levels of stocks.
covid 19
At a global level, the death toll from the COVID-19 virus rose to 1,171,271 (+7,1023 DoD) yesterday. The total number of active cases rose by around 190,000 DoD 10.62 million. (Click here for details).
Naphtha
Asia’s naphtha inter-month spread persisted at its lowest since April as firm demand was countered by ample supplies due to high volumes of cargoes coming from Europe, the Mediterranean and the United States.
Front-month first-half December price was $7 a tonne lower than that of first-half January, making this the steepest discount in about six months.
The November crack is higher at $ 2.25 /bbl
Gasoline
No fresh news on the gasoline markets.
The November crack is steady at $ 2.90 /bbl
Click Here for a graphical depiction of Global Gasoline stocks by region.
Distillates
Asian refining margins for jet fuel climbed on Tuesday as travel bubbles help to nudge up the number of scheduled flights operating in the region.
Refining margins for jet fuel in Singapore rose to $1.22 per barrel over Dubai crude during Asian trading hours, despite firmer feedstock crude prices. They were at $1.05 per barrel a day earlier.
The cracks, which have gained 67% over the last week, is also getting some support from higher seasonal demand for kerosene ahead of winter months in Japan, which burns the fuel to fend off chill.
The November crack for 500 ppm Gasoil is steady at $2.35 /bbl with the 10 ppm crack at $ 3.15 / bbl. The regrade is at -$ 1.00 /bbl.
Click Here for a graphical depiction of Global Distillate stocks by region.
Fuel Oil
Asia’s front-month HSFO crack fell back into a discount against Dubai crude on Tuesday, after tight supplies and strong demand lifted refining margins of the fuel to premium territory over the last week.
The November 180-cst HSFO crack fell to a discount of 19 cents a barrel below Dubai crude, down from a premium of a 19 cents a barrel on Monday and a 13-month high of 80 cents on Friday.
The November crack for 180 cst FO is higher at $0.35 /bbl with the visco spread at $1.15 /bbl.
Click Here for a graphical depiction of Fuel Oil stocks by region.
Hedge Recommendations
We recommend hedging December Jap Naphtha-Dubai at current levels of $ 2.15 / bbl .
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 refinery.
Click Here to see how all our recommendations have fared
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.