SINGAPORE: Asia’s 10-ppm sulphur gasoil refining margins fell for the fourth consecutive day to $15.38 a barrel despite some buyers returning to the spot market to buy competitively priced material.

A few buyers sought spot lots given large declines in prices in the past few days, as evidenced from the deal for a May parcel - but selling interest remained strong.

Cash differentials rebounded after three days of weakness in the week to 20 cents a barrel.

Jet fuel refining margins also fell to just below $14 a barrel, reflecting the weakness from gasoil cracks.

Regrade was almost steady at a discount of $1.42 a barrel.

US crude inventories rose unexpectedly last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday, helped by release of oil from the US government emergency reserve as well as weaker levels of export.

Inventories of middle distillates such as gasoil and jet fuel/kerosene at key trading hub Singapore fell for a second consecutive week to 8.814 million barrels, tracking the higher net export volumes for jet fuel/kerosene, official data showed on Thursday.

China’s crude oil imports in March surged 22.5% from a year earlier to the highest since June 2020, data showed on Thursday, as refiners stepped up runs to capture fuel export demand and in anticipation of a domestic economic recovery.