Naphtha price and margin in Asia at 3 session high

27-Nov-12

Naphtha price in Asia stood at US$942/ton and margins stood at US$109.65/ton on Monday, both three session highs, as per Reuters, However, spot activities were limited as the market awaits results of term talks. Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) is currently in discussions with its Asian buyers to renew term premiums for naphtha lifting February-December 2013. The talks are held in Singapore and are likely to end on Friday. They will be followed by Saudi Aramco's term talks in Osaka, Japan, next week with buyers for naphtha lifting January to June 2013. Most traders expect a firm market next year due to relatively tight supplies, at least for the first quarter, in view of limited naphtha cracker maintenance. Additionally, Taiwan's CPC is to bring onstream a new 700,000 tpa naphtha cracker around July 2013, and that would lead to higher naphtha consumption. It has decommissioned a 230,000 tpa cracker this June.