Johannesburg - South African petroleum company Engen is set to export a gasoil cargo to Singapore, according to trade sources and shipping data, in what would be an unusual move as the country rarely exports the fuel.
Engen has provisionally booked the Torm Horizon to transport 35000tons of gasoil to Singapore from Durban, shipping fixtures showed.
The cargo is probably high sulphur gasoil, whose premium has risen to a more than three-month high this month due to prompt demand in Southeast Asia, four traders and shipbrokers said.
Tightest
The price spread between diesel with 10ppm sulphur and 500ppm sulphur gasoil narrowed to 5cents a barrel in late November, its tightest in more than three years, before widening slightly this year, data shows.
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The gap between the two grades narrowed due to a flood of low sulphur diesel from China, while Southeast Asian countries are still consuming the higher sulphur grade, traders said. Vietnam’s gasoil import demand has reduced due to a fall in retail prices.
“Imports are low, because of full inventory as retailers and distributors are taking minimum volumes,” a source said.