Naphtha in Asia-prices fall, margins rise to five week highs

15-May-13

Asian naphtha price slipped by a dollar to US$870/ton, while margins rose by 2.4% to US$99.60/ton, its highest in five weeks, supported by demand and refinery run cuts, as per Reuters. South Korea's YNCC bought around 75,000 tons of naphtha for H2-June arrival at Yeosu at a premium of about US$9/ton to Japan quotes on a cost-and-freight (C&F) basis. This was about 12% higher than what rival LG Chem paid on May 10 for 25,000 tons scheduled for the same arrival period at Yeosu. Sellers continued to focus on Algeria's cancelled exports of three naphtha cargoes, although those volumes would hardly alter the high eastbound shipments to Asia.