China Daily Oil Summary: Crack Spreads Show Signs of Recovery

China’s crack spreads for refined products showed recovery in the week to Nov. 10, after bottoming out the week prior, according to OilChem. This is the result of falling crude prices and a reduction In CDU utilisation rates.

• Cracks should continue to receive support from falling capacity utilisation rates in China. CDU utilisation rates at independent refineries in the week to Nov. 16 were flat on the week at 62.97%, while rates fell among Shandong’s teapots to 55.96%.
• There are 12 crude-laden VLCC’s offshore Malaysia as of November 14 according to Vortexa – 7 of which are laden with Iranian crude/condensate carrying a combined 12.5mn bbls, suggesting independent refiners in China have access to ample supplies of Iranian crude/condensate.
• POLICY: China hopes the U.S. will take its concerns about export controls and investment reviews seriously and lift unilateral sanctions to provide a fair and non-discriminatory environment for Chinese companies, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported
• POLICY: Beijing has called on the EU to consider industry voices and work with China to promote supply chain stability and the robust and green development of the automotive industry sector, officials at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) told reporters.
• YUAN: The currency weakened to 7.2515 against the dollar from 7.2391 on Wednesday.