The Brent futures flat price for the prompt contract has seen a volatile morning. Initial support was seen with prices rising from $76.84/bbl at 03:00 GMT to $77.49/bbl at 07:15 GMT. Prices then swiftly retraced to $76.82/bbl at 08:40 GMT, before undergoing a V-shaped recovery, with prices soaring back upwards to $77.57/bbl at 09:05 GMT.
The price of chartering a VLCC from the US Gulf Coast to Asia has increased by 25% in the past week, from $8m to $10m, consequently, closing the arbitrage opportunity. The oil tanker, St Nikolas, has been boarded this morning off the coast of Oman by “armed unauthorised personnel”. Chinese refiners have reportedly nominated 38.5mbbls of Saudi crude oil for February-loading, down from the 40mbbls mark seen for January.
The front and 6-month Brent futures spreads are at $0.34/bbl and $1.23/bbl, respectively.
Asian Refinery Margins: Q2-24: $8.02/bbl, Cal24: $7.95/bbl
Europe Refinery Margins: Q2-24: $5.95/bbl, Cal24: $5.06/bbl
