Platts Singapore MOC jet fuel/kerosene cargo traded volume hits 1-year high in Sep

The jet fuel/kerosene cargo traded volume in the Platts Singapore Market on Close assessment process rose 4.12% on the month to 606,000 barrels in September, marking a one-year high, S&P Global Commodity Insights data showed Oct. 2.

The monthly volume was last higher in September 2022 when 610,000 barrels of jet fuel/kerosene changed hands during the Platts Singapore MOC assessment process, S&P Global data showed.

On a year-on-year basis, the September traded volume was down 0.66%.

Total volume of traded jet fuel/kerosene cargoes over January-September was 2.01% lower on the year at 2.288 million barrels, the data showed.

A total of five cargoes were transacted during the Platts MOC process in September. Aramco was the sole seller for all five cargoes, while Vitol, CAO and PetroChina were buyers.

The Asian jet fuel/kerosene market saw periods of volatility in September. While traders said regional supply and inventory levels were seen healthy, factors such as expectations of buying efforts from the kerosene sector for the upcoming winter season for Northeast Asia as well as an evolving picture with China's export volumes of clean oil products resulted in shifts in fundamentals as the market adjusted and weighed demand and supply balances.

Asian middle distillate traders had a mixed view of news reported late September that the Chinese government will not issue new quotas for clean oil product exports and additional allowances for crude oil imports this year, with some saying that this would be supportive for the Asian jet fuel/kerosene market, while others were uncertain.

"So far, we continue to see Chinese export and jet cargoes being brought to the Straits," a trader said, adding that October jet fuel export volumes from China were being estimated at around 1.8 million mt. Should this be realized, this would be higher than September jet fuel exports which have been estimated at around 1.6 million mt, and even more than the 1.55 million mt for August.

"Demand is healthy, but supply is too heavy," the trader said, adding that there could be more clarity following the Golden Week holidays in China.

The Platts FOB Singapore jet fuel/kerosene crack spread against front month cash Dubai, a measure of the product's relative strength to the crude it was refined from, averaged $29.58/b in September, narrowing 2.03% from an average of $30.18/b in August, S&P Global data showed.