RTRS:Asia-Pacific crude-Eyes on May supply, Indonesia tender
SINGAPORE, March 14 (Reuters) - Asia-Pacific crude
held steady on Wednesday as traders await loading schedules to
determine supply for May while looking ahead to results from
Indonesia's buy tender for price direction.
* SUPPLY
- Sweet crude and condensate exports from Australia, Papua New
Guinea and East Timor will rise in May from the previous month
as offshore fields resumed output after being disrupted by bad
weather.
A total of 23-25 cargoes will be available for loading in
May, up from 18 in the previous month, preliminary estimates
show. The May programme will be within the 24-26 cargoes the
countries typically export when fields are operating at full
rates.
Production at fields off Western Australia have resumed
output after a shutdown in late January due to tropical storm
Iggy.
The higher output combined with the recent weakness in fuel
oil and middle distillates margins may weigh on heavy sweet
crude values for May, trade sources said.
Yet, heavy sweet crude could gain support in May if an
approaching cyclone disrupted output and as South Sudan's
production remained shut.
Another cyclone will arrive in Western Australia in the next
2-3 days, a second trader said.
* TENDERS
- Sakhalin Energy has issued a tender offering 730,000 barrels
of Vityaz crude for May 23-30 loading. The tender will close on
March 14 with bids valid until a day later.
Vityaz's premiums could come under pressure after Russian Sokol
and ESPO were sold at the lowest in eight months on weak gasoil
margins and lower demand due to seasonal maintenance.
- Indonesia's Petral, one of the largest sweet crude buyers in
Asia, could award on Thursday a tender to buy crude for May
delivery.
- Petronas is expected to issue tenders by the end of this week
offering May cargoes.
* MARKET NEWS
- Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia stands ready to fill any
oil supply gap - "perceived or real" - as oil prices rally on
fears of a potential loss of Iranian output.
- Morgan Stanley is exiting an oil marketing deal
with the European refineries of Britain's Ineos Group Ltd
at the end of the month, as PetroChina Co Ltd
, which owns half of the refineries, takes
over the job, traders said.
CRUDE Price Prev Change % change
APRIL Oman diff to Dubai 3.38 3.01 0.37
APRIL Brent 125.20 125.25 -0.05 -0.04%
APRIL Dubai 121.21 121.34 -0.13 -0.11%
APRIL DME Oman 124.59 124.35 0.24 0.19%
APRIL Brent/Dubai EFS 3.99 3.91 0.08
DUB-EFS-1M
