In the 152 months between January 1992 and August 2004, the diesel
crack spread exceeded the gasoline
crack spread on only eight occasions--roughly one out of every 20 months.
On Monday, Asian gas oil's January
crack spread firmed to its highest level in nearly 23 months, climbing above $15.
The
crack spread, or profit for processing three barrels of oil into two of gasoline and one of heating oil, rose to a four-month high last week as fuel demand climbed.
Lower diesel shipments from China for July offered some support to the Singapore gas oil
crack spread to $6.
Figure 1 shows the average month
crack spread in the U.
Petroleum Argus of May 10 said ultra-low sulphur gasoil cargoes from Asia-Pacific could potentially move to North-West Europe (NWE), where the diesel
crack spread to Dated had firmed to a 2010 high of $14.
The following are extracts from his presentation: "In other words, if the
crack spread is rising, its products, especially gasoline, are leading crude oil up, not the other way around.
The fall in global refining capacity increased the
crack spread to approximately $11 per barrel in Europe, $26 per barrel in the US, and $19 per barrel in Asia, in February 2012.
A
crack spread is the difference between the cost of oil and the price refiners charge for motor fuel.
