High gasoline stocks coupled with a switch to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in the West would see more naphtha being freed up and pushed to Asia, they explained. LPG, a commodity also used for heating, can be used to replace a portion of naphtha in crackers to produce petrochemical products. Singapore's onshore light distillates stocks, which comprise mostly gasoline and blending components for petrol, dived 10.5 percent to a nine-week low of 13.3 million barrels in the week to May 3.
But US gasoline stocks were up 191,000 barrels last week, the US Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. The modest increase in US stocks came a week after the gasoline inventories had risen by a massive 3.4 million barrels in the week to April 21. Asia's gasoline crack was at a two-session low of $8.56 a barrel. Six deals. Five on gasoline and one on naphtha. Royal Dutch Shell said net profit more than doubled in the first quarter, joining its peers in beating analyst forecasts as rebounding oil prices and refining margins lifted revenue after a near three-year downturn.
Copyright Reuters, 2017