ONGC naphtha parcel sold at year's first discount at US$10/ton

12-Sep-08

India's state-owned Oil and Natural Gas (ONGC) has reportedly sold 35,000 tons of naphtha for Oct 1-2 delivery at a discount of US$10/ton below the Middle East spot bids on FOB basis. This parcel sold to Glencore at a two-digit discount fetched the year's very first discount given by ONGC. The company sold the preceding parcel at a US$1.20-1.5/ton above the Middle East spot quotes for Sep 15-16 loading. Asia is witnessing relatively high naphtha inventories which have badly affected the naphtha coming in from the West in recent times and the weak market is set to carry on for some time now. At 800,000 tons India's naphtha exports were maximum during July, as compared to last year's peak of 1 mln tons in August 2007. Naphtha stocks are at high levels despite cuts in Indian exports on account of maintenance at Indian Oil Corp's (IOC) refineries at Panipat and Koyal.