US-Asia naphtha flow hops on light crude boom

摘要

Singapore—The once rare arbitrage flows of US naphtha to the East may become more regular in coming months, as limited US gasoline demand growth and increased output from shale gas and light crude spurs structurally short Asia to absorb rising exports of the light distillate, traders and analysts said this week. The prospect of changing flows comes even as cheaper gas becomes an attractive alternative for petrochemical producers in the US and Asia, which could put a lid on feedstock prices.