By Jeffrey Bair | May 10, 2013 12:43 PM Comments (2)
They like to say around the Platts office in Houston that California is an island.
An economic island, that is. The kind where the spot prices of gasoline and other refined fuels are insulated from the bob and weave of trades in the rest of the United States.
It’s an interesting analogy. But consider how fuel economics are affecting a real-live island right now: Oahu.
By Herman Wang | May 3, 2013 12:56 PM Comments (0)
It was supposed to be a routine briefing on Capitol Hill Thursday, a chance for the ethanol industry to share their views with congressional staffers on why the Renewable Fuel Standard should be retained.
But the proceedings were enlivened for a brief moment when an analyst for the oil industry decided to stand up and be heard.
Declaring the ethanol industry’s rhetoric against Big Oil as nothing but bluster, Marcus Koblitz, an analyst with the American Petroleum Institute, said during a question-and-answer session at the briefing that he could dismantle its arguments “brick by brick.”
By News Desk | April 24, 2013 06:55 PM Comments (0)
US gasoline inventories sank 3.93 million barrels last week, according to data released Wednesday by the US Energy Information Administration. Gasoline stocks fell across the US, with the exception of the US Atlantic Coast, where inventories edged up 570,000 barrels on a rise in imports. Read the Platts analysis.
By News Desk | April 10, 2013 03:31 PM Comments (0)
US gasoline inventories climbed an unexpected 1.7 million barrels last week, as refiners continued to increase runs, and imports climbed. A 1.541 million barrel stock build on the US Atlantic Coast was considered bearish for the New York-delivered NYMEX RBOB contract. You can see Platts analysis here.
By Yen Ling Song | March 27, 2013 09:51 AM Comments (0)
China’s long-awaited oil pricing reforms have finally been unveiled. But the system may have become less, not more, transparent.
First, some background. In 2008, the government introduced a system of setting retail prices which in theory would raise or cut regulated prices of gasoline, gasoil and kerosene if the rolling 22-working day average of a basket of Cinta, Brent and Dubai benchmark crudes fluctuated more than 4%.
The aim was to move domestic prices closer in line with international crudes so they would reflect the crude procurement costs that refiners bear. This was particularly pressing given the dramatic boost in China’s crude imports, from 30% of its total needs in 2000 to just under 58% last year.
In reality, the system only worked well under two conditions: when oil prices were around $100/barrel and when inflation in China was relatively benign. In much of 2011, when record inflation loomed, the government, worried about the impact on economic growth, made little move to adjust prices upward. That resulted in refiners bleeding at the pump and in some cases curbing production, causing shortages in some areas.
By Meghan Gordon | February 5, 2013 11:55 AM Comments (0)
US companies hoping to make the world’s first commercial-scale gasoline and diesel refined from plant waste have much to prove in 2013, after suffering another year of start-up delays, growing attacks by the oil industry and an unfavorable court ruling.
The second-generation biofuels industry’s best defense against those attacks will be to do what the Environmental Protection Agency thinks it can: make 11 million gallons of cellulosic fuel for refiners to blend under the Renewable Fuel Standard.
By News Desk | January 30, 2013 04:04 PM Comments (0)
US crude inventories climbed nearly 6 million barrels last week on a bounce in imports, data released Wednesday by the US Energy Information Administration showed. At the same time, however, refined product inventories fell. Gasoline stocks dropped as implied demand outweighed a rise in production, keeping bullish pressure on the NYMEX RBOB futures contract. Read Platts’ analysis.
By Tim Worledge | December 28, 2012 03:04 AM Comments (0)
Scouring through the official stock and consumption data published by European governments is one of the glamour aspects of the job. While it might present the average oil analyst, trader, refiner etc. with an invaluable insight into the state of demand for the various oil products, every now and then sifting through the data throws up an interesting conundrum.
Data released by the German Mineralölwirtschaftsverbrand (MWV) has thrown an interesting light (no, really) on the health of an oil product that has been under some threat: the high sulfur 0.1% gasoil that has been the mainstay of German domestic heating oil. In fact, 2012 was something of a bumper year for the out-of-fashion grade, so have reports of its death been greatly exaggerated?
By Matt Kohlman | December 19, 2012 03:46 PM Comments (1)
The US may be importing Christmas toys, iPads and “Gangnam Style” from Asia. But the US is sending a rare gift to Asia over the holidays: gasoline.
At least four cargoes carrying more than 1 million barrels–enough to fill up your SUV tank 2 million times–have moved recently from the US to Asia in a “reverse arbitrage.”
By News Desk | December 5, 2012 04:10 PM Comments (0)
The US market posted an enormous jump in gasoline stocks last week, as reported by the Energy Information Administration’s latest survey. Part of the reason was reduced demand, but refiners also appear to be reacting to strong margins by increasing their rates. You can read Platts’ analysis here.
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