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Wednesday, 10 April 2013 01:27 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
SINGAPORE, April 9 (Reuters) - Asian gasoil margins climbed on Tuesday as spot demand emerged from Sri Lanka’s Ceylon Petroleum Corp after a few months of absence and following a fire at a secondary unit in a Sinopec refinery, industry sources said.
The May gasoil crack edged higher by 29 cents to $17.12 a barrel above Dubai crude, Reuters data showed.
China’s gasoil exports could reduce over the next few weeks following a fire at Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Corp’s residue hydrotreating unit.
The fire has been put out, but it is not clear how long the unit may stay shut. A prolonged shutdown could lead to a reduction in the output of transportation fuels and eventually to a cut in refinery crude runs.
A company spokesman said that so far other units at the refinery are operating normally.
China has been exporting 250,000 tonnes to 300,000 tonnes a month of gasoil, flipping to a net exporter after being a net importer, which has helped to keep pressure on Asian refiners’ profit margins for the fuel.
Gasoil margins were also supported on Tuesday after Sri Lanka’s Ceylon Petroleum entered the spot market seeking prompt gasoil for April, after being absent for most of this year.
In Taiwan, Formosa Petrochemicals Corp has likely sold a May 8-12 loading jet fuel cargo at a slight premium to Singapore quotes, an industry source said, though this could not immediately be confirmed.
The premium is 50 to 60 cents lower than a March loading cargo sold by the refiner earlier, reflecting weaker demand in the jet fuel market, sources said.
Taiwan’s CPC Corp was also offering up to 550,000 barrels of gasoil for May, which could offset any potential reduction in Chinese exports, the sources said.
