Saudi Aramco sets January propane CP at $740/mt, butane at $710/mt

Saudi Aramco set its January propane contract price at $740/mt, down $55/mt from the December CP, and the butane CP at $710/mt, $40/mt below December, the company said Dec. 30.

This was the second consecutive decrease after six straight monthly rises in CPs. The levels were last lower for September at $665/mt for both propane and butane, S&P Global Platts data showed.

The January propane and butane CPs were set higher than lifters' recommendations which were between $705/mt and $730/mt for propane, and butane about $25/mt to $35/mt below that.

The front-month January Saudi CP propane swap was last assessed at $724/mt and the January Saudi CP butane swap at $694/mt at the Asian close Dec. 29, Platts data showed.

The front-month January Saudi CP propane swap was notionally indicated at $730/mt on Dec. 30, while butane was indicated at $700/mt, brokers said.

Saudi Aramco had set the January 2021 propane CP at $550/mt and butane CP at $530/mt, Platts data showed.

Aramco's CPs, which set the price for propane and butane lifted from the Saudi Arabian ports of Yanbu, Ras Tanura and Ju'aymah under term supply contracts, are closely watched by the market as they tend to set a base for pricing in most markets East of Suez.