Oil Products Summary at European Close: Diesel Cracks down on Week

Diesel cracks are are set to end the week almost 10% lower than it started, amid falling weekly demand and US stocks falling in line with seasonal trends. Downside remains limited by tightness in stocks globally.

• Gasoil NOV 23 down -1.2% at 878$/mt
• US ULSD crack down -1.5$/bbl at 39.31$/bbl
• RBOB NOV 23 up 1.2% at 2.28$/gal
• US gasoline crack up 0.3$/bbl at 11.19$/bbl
• Overall weaker gasoline crack prices in the US are filtering through to the pump as the US average crosses the $3.49/gal mark this week. US gasoline demand remains lackluster on a seasonal basis.
• Valero plans to run its 14 US refineries at 96.5% in Q4 it said yesterday, up from 95% in Q3 – a more bullish signal despite signs of economic malaise. The company noted significant exports to Latin America.
• Russia sent record volumes of seaborne fuel oil and vacuum gasoil to India las month, totalling 1.4mn tons, up from 0.6mn tons in August, LSEG data and Reuters calculation showed.
• QatarEnergy has offered additional gasoil cargoes for loading in 2024, according to Reuters sources. QatarEnergy is looking to sell at least 324k bbl of gasoil per month from December 2023 to March 2024
• BP’s Gelsenkirchen refinery in Germany is planning to restart a crude unit this weekend after it was halted in mid-September, a person familiar with the matter said, cited by Bloomberg.
• Northwest Europe and Med naphtha discounts to crude are expected to widen in November once planned refinery maintenance ends, according to Bloomberg citing a Kpler report.
• EU officials held an emergency meeting on Friday in which they discussed to diversify oil stocks and to create a buffer for diesel and gasoil, amid potential supply risks in case of an escalation in the conflict on the Middle East, one official told Reuters.