RTRS:Middle East Crude-Supported by tighter gas oil supplies
SINGAPORE, Aug 22 (Reuters) - The Middle East crude market
remained buoyed by concerns over tightening gas oil inventories
globally, traders said.
Benchmark Abu Dhabi Murban crude was pegged at a premium of
around 25 to 30 cents to the official selling price (OSP), up
nearly 5 cents from levels seen transacted late last week.
At least one October loading cargo traded at a premium of
about 25 cents to the OSP.
"In addition to refinery maintenance, we also see that
inventories globally are pretty thin. This is a supportive
factor, especially since we are already looking at the
fourth-quarter," a Singapore-based trader said.
"We are going into the peak demand season for heating oil
and if we don't see inventories pick up that leaves markets
vulnerable to price distortions in the case of a harsh winter."
Some traders are also looking at Chinese demand to remain
robust going into the end of the year, which will support the
market further.
"My view is that we'll see a turnaround in the Chinese
economy the next few months, it's not going to be as sluggish,"
a trading source with a financial institution said.
"I also see stockpiling in China increasing in the coming
months."
Asia gas oil cracks continue to be supported, having gained
41 cents to a premium of $19.55 per barrel to Dubai crude in
September, while the October crack rose 56 cents to a $19.32 per
barrel premium to Dubai.
* TRADES
- There were no over-the-counter (OTC) trades on Wednesday.
* REFINERY
- Gazprom Neft, operator of the 220,000
barrels-per-day Moscow refinery, said part of the plant would be
shut for two months of maintenance from September 21, without
saying which units would be shut. The company said it was
switching to a four-year maintenance cycle from a two-year
cycle.
* MARKET NEWS
- Asia's crude imports from Iran are set to recover in
September to levels reached before a July 1 insurance ban by the
European Union plunged trade with the Islamic Republic into
uncertainty not seen in decades.
CRUDE Price Prev Change %
change
OCT DME Oman diff to 1.56 1.32 0.24
Dubai
OCT Brent 114.26 114.53 -0.27 -0.24%
OCT Dubai 110.52 110.70 -0.18 -0.16%
OCT DME Oman 112.08 112.02 0.06 0.05%
OCT Brent/Dubai EFS 3.74 3.83 -0.09
DUB-EFS-1M
