Asian naphtha shrugs off bearish factors to cross US$1000/mt mark

06-Apr-11

The benchmark Asian naphtha flat price or Mean of Platts Japan (MOPJ), - the pricing reference for all naphtha cargoes traded in Asia, broke through the US$1000/mt barrier, less than a month after its last stint at those levels, as per Platts. MOPJ closed on Monday at US$1013/mt, rising by US$15.50/mt from Friday's assessment of US$997.50/mt. The last time the benchmark was assessed above US$1000/mt was on March 10, when it closed at US$,009.75/mt. The gains came partly on the back of a rise in Western crude benchmarks, but a rise in cracks showed that the climb in naphtha had outpaced that of crude. At the close of Asian trading H1-June naphtha crack against June Brent futures was valued at US$119.10/mt. This rise has dampened buying in petrochemical producers and traders, potentially souring demand. Many term this rise as curious as it comes amid a period of cracker maintenance currently underway in Asia. The cracker maintenance in North Asia over April and May should technically exert downward pressure on naphtha prices. Others opine that demand for naphtha in Asia might still hold up despite the maintenance, with limited supply from the Middle East due to refinery maintenance as well as a cap in arbitrage volumes from the West due to barrels flowing toward the US.