SINGAPORE, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Asia's cash discounts for jet fuel narrowed on Thursday, buoyed by an uptick in buying interest for physical cargoes, while refining margins for the aviation fuel inched higher on weaker feedstock crude prices.
Cash differentials for jet fuel JET-SIN-DIF were at a discount of 20 cents a barrel to Singapore quotes, their narrowest since Nov. 10. They were at a discount of 25 cents per barrel a day earlier.
Refining margins, or cracks, for jet fuel JETSGCKMc1 rose 34 cents to $4.35 per barrel over Dubai crude during Asian trading hours, hitting the highest since March 30.
The cracks have strengthened in recent weeks, thanks to seasonal heating demand for kerosene, and firming aviation demand from domestic routes.
Australia's Qantas Airways QAN.AX said on Thursday its outlook had improved significantly because the country had reopened its state borders, with rising domestic capacity allowing the airline to start the process of repairing its pandemic-hit balance sheet. jet profit margins, however, are still more than 70% lower than their historical average for this time of the year, Refinitiv Eikon data showed.
The jet fuel market, which has taken the worst hit from the virus, is expected to gradually recover in coming quarters as more grounded flights return to the skies, but it would still take years for the fundamentals to go back to pre-crisis levels, market watchers said.
The prompt-month time spread for the aviation fuel in Singapore JETSGSPDMc0 , which has been in a contango structure since March, traded at a discount of 41 cents per barrel on Thursday.
INVENTORIES
- Singapore's middle distillate inventories rose 3.1% to 15.9 million barrels in the week to Dec. 2, according to Enterprise Singapore data. O/SING1
- Weekly Singapore middle distillate inventories have averaged about 13.7 million barrels so far in 2020, Reuters calculations showed. This week's stocks were 46.4% higher year-on-year.
- U.S. distillate stockpiles rose by 3.2 million barrels in the week to Nov. 27, versus expectations for a 209,000-barrel drop, the U.S. Energy Information Administration data showed on Wednesday. EIA/S
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS O/AS
- No jet fuel deals, no gasoil trades
OTHER NEWS
- Oil prices fell on Thursday as producers including Saudi Arabia and Russia locked horns over the need to extend record production cuts set in place during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. O/R
ASSESSMENTS MID-DISTILLATES
CASH ($/T)
ASIA CLOSE
Change % Change Prev Close RIC Spot Gas Oil 0.5%
51.70
1.20
2.38
50.50 GO-SIN GO 0.5 Diff
-1.31
0.01
-0.76
-1.32 GO-SIN-DIF Spot Gas Oil 0.25%
52.00
1.20
2.36
50.80 GO25-SIN GO 0.25 Diff
-1.01
0.01
-0.98
-1.02 GO25-SIN-DIF Spot Gas Oil 0.05%
52.15
1.20
2.36
50.95 GO005-SIN GO 0.05 Diff
-0.86
0.01
-1.15
-0.87 GO005-SIN-DIF Spot Gas Oil 0.001%
52.81
1.22
2.36
51.59 GO10-SIN GO 0.001 Diff
-0.20
0.03
-13.04
-0.23 GO10-SIN-DIF Spot Jet/Kero
51.38
1.21
2.41
50.17 JET-SIN Jet/Kero Diff
-0.20
0.05
-20.00
-0.25 JET-SIN-DIF
For a list of derivatives prices, including margins, please double
click the RICs below.
Brent M1
BRENTSGMc1
Gasoil M1
GOSGSWMc1
Gasoil M1/M2
GOSGSPDMc1
Gasoil M2
GOSGSWMc2
Regrade M1
JETREGSGMc1
Regrade M2
JETREGSGMc2
Jet M1
JETSGSWMc1
Jet M1/M2
JETSGSPDMc1
Jet M2
JETSGSWMc2
Gasoil 500ppm-Dubai
GOSGCKMc1
Cracks M1
Gasoil 500ppm-Dubai
GOSGCKMc2
Cracks M2
Jet Cracks M1
JETSGCKMc1
Jet Cracks M2
JETSGCKMc2
East-West M1
LGOAEFSMc1
East-West M2
LGOAEFSMc2
LGO M1
LGOAMc1
LGO M1/M2
LGOASPDMc1
LGO M2
LGOAMc2
Crack LGO-Brent M1
LGOACKMc1
Crack LGO-Brent M2
LGOACKMc2