Asia's gasoil crack holds firm

Asia's gasoil crack for the benchmark 500ppm grade remained on Friday near the $12 a barrel mark it has occupied for over two weeks versus an average of $9.8 for the first half of May, giving most refiners the incentive to run at high rates, traders said. Recent strong demand from India and parts of Southeast Asia has given sellers some reprieve, although stocks remain plentiful due to high refinery run rates on previous cheap crude oil prices.
Over the first four months of the year, Asia's crude runs were higher year-on-year by an average of 709,000 barrels per day or 2.6 percent, led by India, China and South Korea, said a note by consulting firm FGE on June 10. High stock levels were recorded in both the West and Asia. Gasoil stocks independently held in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp hub, for instance, were 3.164 million tonnes in the week to Thursday. While that was down 2 percent on the previous week, it remained above the year-ago level of 3.015 million tonnes, data from Dutch consultancy PJK International showed.