Gasoline buckles in July after stunning June comeback
Asia’s gasoline refining margins nearly burned up in July, dropping to just above zero in the worst profit performance for refined fuels over the month as a new wave of coronavirus infections walloped demand recovery and swelled supplies.
The situation turned even direr on Monday when the fuel’s margin sank into the red for the first time since June 2.
Gasoline had staged a stunning comeback in June as some economies started to reopen, with its margins in Asia returning to premiums against crude oil from steep discounts in April and May.
By end-July, though, Asian petrol premiums to Brent had dropped to four cents a barrel from $2.37 on July 1. Margins for benchmark 10 parts-per-million (ppm) gasoil rose two cents to $6.86 over the same period.
