SINGAPORE- The Middle East crude market stayed weak on Thursday with more spot October-loading cargoes from Qatar and Abu Dhabi trading at wide discounts against their respective price markers while premiums for Russian grades held steady from the previous month.
TENDERS
Japanese refiner Fuji Oil has bought 2.5 million barrels of Middle East crude for October loading via a tender and is seeking more oil to replace Iranian supplies, several trade sources said.
Fuji Oil bought 1 million barrels of Banoco Arab Medium crude at premiums of about 15 cents a barrel to its official selling price (OSP) and another 1 million barrels of Qatar Land crude at discounts of 50 cents and 70 cents a barrel to its OSP, they said.
In a tender that closed on Thursday, the refiner bought 500,000 barrels of Upper Zakum crude at 25 cents a barrel below its OSP, the sources said.
Fuji Oil, like other Japanese refiners, is expected to stop loading Iranian crude from October onwards as U.S. sanctions on Iran will kick in from November.
"Shippers, insurers and banks are very reluctant to do Iranian trade," one of the sources said.
RUSSIA: Russian oil producer Surgutneftegaz has sold two ESPO crude cargoes at slightly higher premiums than the previous month via a tender, several trade sources said on Thursday
The cargoes to load between Sept. 30 and Oct. 5 and on Oct. 4-9 were sold to Chinese buyers at $2.50-$2.60 a barrel above Dubai quotes, they said, versus last tender at premiums of $2.10-$2.40. Each cargo is 740,000 barrels.
A shorter loading programme and firm demand from China ahead of winter supported the grade's spot premiums, they said.
ONGC sold a Sokol cargo loading on Oct. 1-7 to ENOC at about $3.10 a barrel above Dubai quotes, a steady premium from the previous month.
BAPCO has sold its September-loading Banoco Arab Medium crude at a discount of about 80 cents a barrel to its OSP, traders said. The buyer was not immediately known.
WINDOW: Cash Dubai's premium to swaps edged down 4 cents to 25 cents a barrel. Total sold three Oman partials to Vitol in rare trades. Seller-Buyer Price Totsa-Vitol (Oman) 69.9 Totsa-Vitol (Oman) 69.9 Totsa-Vitol (Oman) 69.9 Reliance-Shell 69.65 Reliance-Vitol 69.66 Reliance-Shell 69.65 Gunvor-Vitol 69.66
PRICES ($/BBL)
CURRENT PREV SESSION DME OMAN 70.00 70.88 DME OMAN DIFF TO DUBAI 0.59 0.52 CASH DUBAI 69.66 70.65
Dubai has set its official differential to Oman futures OQc1 for November at a premium of $0.25 per barrel, the Dubai Department of Petroleum Affairs said on Thursday.
REFINERY
Vietnam's 200,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) Nghi Son refinery has resumed its test runs after a power outage caused disruption to oil production, the refinery's owner Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical LLC said.
India's Reliance Industries has declared force majeure on gasoline exports from its Jamnagar site, four people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, causing the profit margin from producing the fuel to jump to its highest since September.
NEWS
Japan's customs-cleared crude oil imports fell 10.2 percent in July from the same month a year earlier, the Ministry of Finance said on Thursday.
QHG Oil Ventures, a joint venture between Qatar Investment Authority and Glencore, has valued a 14.2 percent stake in Rosneft, which it is selling, at 7.4 billion euros ($8.4 billion), a QHG financial statement showed.
Tough new rules on marine fuel are forcing shipowners to explore liquefied natural gas as a cleaner alternative and ports such as Gibraltar are preparing to offer upgraded refuelling facilities in the shipping industry's biggest shake-up in decades.
Saudi Arabia replaced Iraq as top oil supplier to India in July after a gap of more than a year, according to data from industry and shipping sources, as a higher intake of Iranian oil ahead of U.S. sanctions altered trade routes. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N1V15H5
(Reporting by Florence Tan; Editing by Vyas Mohan) ((Florence.Tan@thomsonreuters.com; +65 6870 3497; Reuters Messaging: florence.tan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
