SINGAPORE: The Asia-Pacific crude market remained steady on Friday with Malaysia offering a condensate cargo for June, while Thailand and Taiwan sought sweet crude cargoes, trade sources said.
MALAYSIA
Malaysia's Petronas has offered 320,000 barrels of Cakerawala condensate for loading over June 2-11.
The tender closes on April 24 and is valid until April 25.
Petronas last sold an April-loading Cakerawala condensate cargo to Thailand's PTT at a premium of $3 a barrel to dated Brent, traders said.
THAILAND
Thailand's PTT is seeking up to 1 million barrels of sweet crude on behalf of IRPC for delivery in late June to early July, traders said.
The tender closes on April 23 and is valid until April 24.
TAIWAN
Taiwan's CPC Corp is seeking sweet crude for delivery in June in a tender that closes on April 23 and valid until April 25.
CONDENSATE
Spot premiums for June-loading condensate sold into Asia have slipped on low demand from Indonesia and as some South Korean buyers have switched to light crude, trade sources said.
The drop in condensate premiums comes despite reduced exports from Iran and ahead of a planned restart of a condensate splitter in China that was expected to lift Asia's demand for the ultra-light oil.
Indonesia's Pertamina cancelled a tender to buy June-loading condensate after it slashed imports of North West Shelf condensate in recent months and turned to importing gasoline instead.
NEWS
Gasoline profits for Asia's oil refiners hit their lowest since 2016, while refining margins have touched a three-month low, pulled down by high crude oil prices and an oversupply of fuel.
The recent high refinery activity in Europe and Asia caused gasoline inventories to swell to record highs in late March, forcing traders to charter tankers in order to store excess fuel offshore as space on land runs low.
Goldman Sachs said it expects global oil demand growth to remain strong this year and contribute to further declines in oil inventories.
A global oil glut has been virtually eliminated, according to a joint OPEC and non-OPEC technical panel, two sources familiar with the matter said, thanks in part to an OPEC-led supply cut deal in place since January 2017.
Brazil's state-run oil company is nearing a deal in which China National Petroleum Corp Ltd (CNPC) would invest in an oil refinery in exchange for crude oil, two people with knowledge of the talks told Reuters, potentially giving China its first refining capacity in the Americas.
Iraqi Oil Minister Jabar al-Luaibi said on Friday the planned new Kirkuk oil pipeline was still under analysis and more than 90 offers had been received for it.
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