Asia's naphtha crack continues falling at the end of week

02-Jun-14

Asia's naphtha crack fell for the fourth day on Friday to US$144/ton as concerns over additional supplies from new units countered the impact of fewer European barrels. Kuwait Petroleum Corp (KPC) closed its August 2014 to July 2015 full-range naphtha term deal with its Asian buyers at US$29/ton to Middle East quotes on a free-on-board (FOB) basis, as per Reuters. This was down 6.5% from a year ago when Kuwait had commanded US$31/ton for the 12-month contract starting August 2013 despite strong buyers' resistance. Abu Dhabi National Oil Co's (ADNOC) offered three naphtha grades for the same period of August 2014 to July 2015 at US$27.50- 29.50/ton to its own price formula on a FOB basis, down by about 1.6-4.5% versus its one-year contract ending July 2014. Indian exports for June were also seen higher at more than 600,000 tons compared to below 500,000 tons for May. Reliance Industries' June exports hit 240,000 tons, highest volume sold in a single month since December, traders said. Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd's (BPCL) June shipment, including Bina, hit nearly 130,000 tons, highest volume sold in a month since October 2013 when its volumes reached nearly 170,000 tonnes, Reuters data showed.