Gasoil stocks in independent storage in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) refining and storage hub fell by 1.7pc in the week to Thursday to 2.76 million tonnes, data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global showed.

US distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell last week by 2.4 million barrels, versus expectations for a 522,000-barrel increase, EIA data showed.

Diesel exports from Asia and the Middle East were expected to rise in July to nearly 3 million tonnes as a number of newly-built very large crude carriers (VLCCs) have been booked to ship refined product on their maiden voyage, according to traders.

Maltese fuel distributor Enemed issued a tender to buy 10,000 tonnes/month of diesel for September 2019, to March 2020, delivery, a document showed.