Naphtha in Asia hovered at a 1-1/2 month high of US$870 on Tuesday while margins remained at a two-month high of US$93.30/ton premium, supported by unusual demand from Japan. Demand from Japan has been unusually high on account of the shutdown of JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp’s refinery, as per Reuters. JX Nippon started shutting down secondary units at its 240,200 bpd Mizushima-B refinery following its discovery that inspection records were not properly kept. The shutdown could last several months, prompting Japan's Asahi Kasei Chemicals Corp to secure naphtha supplies to meet the requirements of its 504,000 tpa Mizushima cracker.
18-Jul-12 
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