Asia Naphtha/Gasoline-Gasoline eases amid cautious outlook; naphtha gains slightly

SINGAPORE, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Asia's gasoline markets softened as some worries about price sustainability emerged, with refining margins easing for a second straight session.

Cracking margins for octane-92 gasoline GL92-SIN-CRK fell to $14.6 a barrel, nearly a two-week low, at the market's close.

Concerns on the sustainability of prices at such levels still remained, given that the export arbitrage windows from other markets including in the West to Asia have opened up and Asian prices were the highest currently, one trade source said.

At least one medium-range vessel has been chartered to ship gasoline from the U.S. west coast to the Singapore straits region, according to multiple trade sources.

Meanwhile for naphtha, spot buying activities from key northeast Asian cracker operators remained in full swing for mostly second-half January and first-half February deliveries - though some buyers waited by the sidelines first amid cautious outlooks.

Naphtha cracks NAF-SIN-CRK inched up slightly to $93.6 a ton, reflecting the weaker performance in crude markets in comparison.

On tenders, India's HPCL offered one 7,000-ton cargo loading from Mumbai and one 17,000-ton cargo loading from Mundra between December 25 and January 20. South Korea's YNCC bought one 25,000-ton cargo for delivery in second-half January at single digit premiums linked to CFR Japan price quotes.

SINGAPORE CASH DEALS O/AS

- No deals for gasoline or naphtha

NEWS

- The cost of shipping oil is likely to remain high in the first half of 2026 as the global fleet ages and a rising number of vessels are hit with Western sanctions, shipping sources say, though rates could be capped in the second half.

- The volume of Venezuelan oil already headed to China before the U.S. seized a tanker off the South American country's coast last week, plus a glut of crude in storage and weak demand, will limit the near-term impact of the move in the Chinese market, traders and analysts said.

- Oil prices fell on Tuesday, adding to the previous session's losses, as prospects for a Russia-Ukraine peace deal appeared to strengthen, raising expectations of a potential easing of sanctions. O/R

INVENTORIES

- U.S. crude oil stockpiles were expected to have fallen last week, while distillate and gasoline inventories likely rose, a preliminary Reuters poll showed on Monday. EIA/S

REFINERY NEWS REF/OUT

- State-owned Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (KIPIC) restarted its 205,000 barrels per day crude distillation unit at its Al Zour Refinery on December 13, nearly a month later than initially expected, industry monitor IIR said on Monday.

- PBF Energy extinguished a fire on Sunday morning in a coker unit at its 160,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Los Angeles-area refinery in Torrance, California, according to a notice filed with the California Office of Emergency Services.

PRICES

(Reporting by Trixie Yap; Editing by Tasim Zahid)

((trixie.yap@thomsonreuters.com;))