SINGAPORE: Asian refining margins for 10 ppm gasoil rose to a week-high on Monday, buoyed by firmer demand, while regional supplies remain limited.

Refining margins, also known as cracks, for 10 ppm gasoil climbed to $18.69 a barrel over Dubai crude during Asian trading hours, up from $17.80 per barrel on Friday.

The gasoil cracks have gained nearly 5% in February, Refinitiv Eikon data showed.

Cash premiums for gasoil with 10 ppm sulphur content climbed to $2.21 a barrel to Singapore quotes on Monday, compared with a $2 premium at the end of last week.

The Feb/March time spread for the benchmark gasoil grade in Singapore traded at $2.45 per barrel, while the prompt-month spread for jet fuel was at $1.84 a barrel on Monday, Refinitiv data showed.

Cash differentials for jet fuel rose to $1.77 per barrel to Singapore quotes, up from $1.51 a barrel on Friday.

India’s Reliance Industries Ltd plans to produce blue hydrogen at a “competitive cost” of about $1.2-$1.5 per kg as it repurposes its $4-billion gasification assets, the conglomerate said in a presentation.

• Reliance earlier had unveiled plans to reduce its dependence on its mainstay oil-to-chemicals business and invested in clean energy projects to burnish its green credentials.

Four gasoil deals, no jet fuel trades. European banks are providing billions of dollars of funding to expand oil and gas production, a report on Monday showed, despite International Energy Agency guidance against new facilities in order to slow global warming.

Oil prices were steady on Monday after hitting their highest in more than seven years on fears that a possible invasion of Ukraine by Russia could trigger US and European sanctions that would disrupt exports from one of the world’s top oil producers.