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MRPL Sells 36,000t Jet Fuel to Mercuria At Weaker Levels

  • Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd has sold 36,000 tonnes of jet fuel for January to Mercuria at weaker levels, industry sources said on Friday.
  • The refiner sold the jet fuel cargo for loading over Jan. 9-11 to Mercuria at a discount of between $1.55 and $1.65 a barrel to benchmark Singapore quotes, they said.
  • MRPL last sold a similar-sized cargo for loading in late December to Trafigura at a discount of $1.50 a barrel.
  • While the levels done for the most recent tender were weaker than the previous cargo sold, traders said the numbers looked too strong, given the weak jet fuel market.
  • "I don't think this cargo is priced to be sent to Singapore...the number looks too strong," said a Singapore-based middle distillates trader.
  • Jet fuel prices for the prompt month weakened to a more than two month low on Thursday, with the December/January contango widening by 6 cents to minus 25 cents a barrel, Reuters data showed.
  • Europe's debt crisis and slower air travel in winter has dampened the demand for jet fuel, effectively shutting any arbitrage opportunities to send the product over from Asia, traders said.
  • Source