Details of state-owned Indonesian company Pertamina's tender for Nile Blend or Wassana crude for mid-September loading were yet to emerge.
The company, however, had taken some Nigerian Qua Iboe for September loading, which could pressure regional grades.
Improving gasoil crack spreads may provide a boost for middle-distillate rich Asia-Pacific grades. Gasoil's premium to Dubai crude rose to $13.09 a barrel on Monday, the highest since Dec. 12.
Brent's premium to Dubai swaps, or Brent-Dubai Exchange of Futures for Swaps (EFS), for September was at $3.40 a barrel.
Loadings of West Africa oil heading for Asia are set to edge higher in July, supported by firm demand for Angolan oil from China and India, a Reuters survey of shipping fixtures and traders showed.
Roughly 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) is scheduled to sail east in July, shipping sources said. The volume for July is higher than an eight-month low of 1.647 million bpd booked for June loading.
REFINERY
China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) has started operating an upgraded refinery project in eastern China following a 13 billion yuan ($1.95 billion) revamp programme, according to a company official and state media report. CNOOC added 15 production units at Daxie Petrochemical, located in coastal city of Ningbo, boosting its annual production capacity to 7 million tonnes, (about 140,000 barrels a day), Xinhua news agency cited CNOOC as saying on Sunday.