Asia naphtha cargoes traded $63 a metric ton lower on the Platts window on concern that global fuel demand may fall. Total SA bought gasoil for a second day in Singapore, the region’s biggest oil-trading center. Light Distillates Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the biggest buyer of naphtha cargoes on the window this month, purchased 25,000 tons for delivery to Japan in the second half of October from BP Plc at $905 a ton, according to a Bloomberg News survey of traders monitoring transactions on the Platts window. Yesterday, Shell paid $968 a ton for a cargo delivered in the same period. Naphtha’s premium to London-traded Brent crude futures, or the crack spread, slumped to $88.92 a ton at 5:39 p.m. Singapore time from $116.65 a ton at the end of Asian trading on July 29, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Total sold 50,000 barrels of 92-RON gasoline to Morgan Stanley at $113.95 a barrel, the survey showed. The Paris-based refiner sold 50,000 barrels of 95-RON to Vitol Group at a premium of $3 a barrel to 92-RON prices. Vitol bought 50,000 barrels of 92-RON from Trafigura Beheer BV at $113.90 a barrel. The London-based trader sold 50,000 barrels of 95-RON to Shell at $118.60 a barrel. Shell bought 50,000 barrels of 97-RON from Morgan Stanley at $121.50 a barrel. Middle Distillates Total bought 0.5 percent sulfur gasoil, or diesel, in Singapore for a second day, the survey of traders showed. Total paid 40 cents a barrel below benchmark quotes to Barclays Plc for 150,000 barrels, and sold a similar cargo to BP at $120.10 a barrel. Trafigura bought 250,000 barrels of gasoil from Glencore International AG, receiving a 45-cent discount to quotes, the survey showed. Last month, Glencore was the biggest buyer in Singapore, purchasing at least 4 million barrels. Gasoil’s premium to Asian benchmark Dubai crude gained 4 cents to $19.78 a barrel at 2:55 p.m. Singapore time, according to PVM Oil Associates Ltd., a broker. This crack spread, a measure of refining profit, widened 9 percent this week, the most in five weeks. Jet fuel’s premium to gasoil slid 5 cents to $1.55 a barrel, PVM said. This regrade fell 23 percent this week, snapping a four-week rally, indicating it’s less profitable to produce aviation fuel over diesel. Fuel Oil Fuel oil’s discount to Dubai crude narrowed 71 cents to $5.30 a barrel at 2:55 p.m. Singapore time, according to PVM. That’s the smallest gap since June 28, indicating reduced losses for refiners turning oil into residual products. In Singapore, Vitol sold 20,000 tons of 180-centistoke fuel oil to Hin Leong Trading Pte at $2.75 a ton over quotes for August, the Bloomberg News survey showed. The premium of 180-centistoke fuel oil to 380-centistoke was unchanged after declining to $9.25 a ton, PVM said. This viscosity spread widened 2.8 percent this week after two weeks of losses, meaning bunker, or marine fuel, dropped more than higher-quality fuel oil. To contact the reporters on this story: Yee Kai Pin in Singapore at kyee13@bloomberg.net; Ann Koh in Singapore at akoh15@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alexander Kwiatkowski at akwiatkowsk2@bloomberg.net.

Source